One Insult Too Many
by Hexalys
Summary: Tony had to admit it, insulting the All-Father was definitely not the wisest thing he'd ever done. At this point, stuck out in the rain and covered with fur, he figured his luck couldn't get much worse… until Reindeer Games had to be the one to find him that is.
1. Quit While You're Ahead

**Disclaimer**: By now it should be obvious that I am neither Stan Lee nor Disney; therefore I don't own Marvel or any of its characters.

At one point in the Avengers movie Loki slightly explained how Thor had arrived on Midgard even though the Bifröst was destroyed. Loki says _"How much dark energy did the All-father have to muster to conjure you here?"_ This sentence made me think that the All-Father must be far more knowledgeable in the ways of magic than I had originally thought.

So in this story Odin knows some magic, he just chooses not to use it. Magic is still considered weak to most Asgardians. I don't want anyone getting pissy and sending me PM's that say "_Odin doesn't use magic like that!_" You don't like it then hit the freaking back button. I don't appreciate flamers. This story is obviously AU and is mainly rated M because of Tony's foul mouth and mentions of torture and other unpleasant things. I tried to keep all characters as close to their basis as possible, but if any seem a little too OOC then I apologize in advance.

That being said please enjoy the story!

~One Insult Too Many~

Chapter 1: Quit While You're Ahead

It had been a routine check-up that had led Tony Stark to be in Odin All-Father's presence. Only three months had passed since Loki's attempt to rule Earth, though sometimes it felt longer than that to Tony. Life had become so absolutely dull since the Chitauri invasion. No new bad guys had jumped out of the woodworks and the old ones stayed where they had been since they were last beaten, imprisoned or dead.

Fury, as per his agreement with Thor when he'd handed Loki over to Asgard, was entitled to a monthly check-up on Loki's status. One of the Avengers, besides Point Break, would go to Asgard to make sure that Loki was still there and still being punished.

A slight slap to Asgardian faces? Maybe, but one Fury felt was necessary. As the one-eyed Director had explained to Thor, "_You have an annoying habit of taking it easy on your brother; I just want to make sure that the bastard doesn't get away with what he's done._"

Reluctantly, Point Break had agreed to the monthly visits. Capsicle had been the first one to go check up on Loki and Agent Romanoff had taken the last visit. Tony had happily volunteered to go this time just to escape the monotony that had suddenly plagued his life. Fury had of course been hesitant to let him go, but with Legolas and Romanoff off on a mission and Capsicle still out exploring the world, Fury had little choice in the matter.

So with an excited grin, he had arranged for Pepper to handle the company while he was gone for the day, not like she didn't do that already. Pepper had shooed him off with an eye roll as she promised to take care of everything if he promised to stay safe. He left without kissing her goodbye, without telling her how much he cared for her.

His almost death when getting rid of the nuke during the invasion had been the last straw.

Pepper had finally had enough, she could handle dating Tony Stark, but she couldn't handle dating Iron Man.

Tony accepted her choice with his usual grin and if anyone noticed how forced it was, they were smart enough not to point it out. He cared for Pepper, but he couldn't give up being Iron Man any more than he could tear the Arc Reactor from his chest. So he ignored the way he longed to hold her again and Pepper went back to her old role as his PA that basically ran the company.

Sometimes though, when they were alone, Pepper would look at him with that same longing on her face. And he wanted her back so badly, but every time he tried to reconcile, she shot him down, leaving him to swallow bitter feelings and angry words, along with any alcohol he could get his hands on.

It was a change in his life that Tony still hated and wouldn't be getting used to any time soon.

Arriving on Asgard via Tesseract transportation left him feeling like his insides wanted to be on his outsides, but other than the frown on his face, he gave no sign of his discomfort. Thor, who had already made the trip with both Capsicle and Agent Romanoff, wasn't fooled. The God of Thunder, however, apparently knew better than to point out his physical state.

In his opinion, Thor wasn't nearly as thick as Loki had painted him out to be.

Any traveling sickness Tony had was quickly forgotten when his eyes met with the stunning sight that was Asgard. White polished stone and gold buildings towered over them, some floating others simply rising out of the mountains themselves. There was so much to see, he felt as if it would take more than his lifetime to take it all in. And if there was ever a more magnificent sight, he was sure he would never live to see it.

Still he was a Stark, and they never gaped at anything, even if it was an alien city that had only existed in myths. As Thor sent him a proud smile, Tony felt his own ego rise in response, so he just had to make a smartass comment.

"Pretty towers, but mine's bigger." Sadly, Thor didn't seem to understand the underlining innuendo.

Next they came to the Rainbow Bridge, which had been a little too much for him and he couldn't resist the urge to take a few jabs at the rather flamboyant symbolism it could stand for. Thor not getting what he was referring _again_ took most of the fun out of it. Tony decided to meet Loki's assessment concerning Thor half-way.

The God of Thunder could be thick_ most of the time_.

Point Break gave him a brief tour for courtesy's sake before arriving at Loki's cell at the bottom of the palace. While the cell itself was small, Loki was clearly not deprived from a comfortable living. The bed, though not very large, looked soft enough with thick blankets and plenty of pillows. A chair rested in the corner of the cell, made out of furs from creatures Tony was sure he didn't know the names of. Finally, there was a small desk covered with books, resting against the wall. '_What? No curtains?_' He thought sarcastically.

Oddly enough, there was a thin layer of dust coating the desk and books.

Loki himself was there, sitting in the fur-made chair and looking more relaxed than a prisoner rightly should. Thor coughed politely to let him know they were there and Reindeer Games gave an irritated sigh before he turned to them, an opened book resting in his hands. He took his time looking over Loki's appearance, and besides the lack of armor, the imprisoned God hadn't changed at all in looks during the past three months.

"I see it is time for another update on my imprisonment." Loki said as he returned an assessing gaze, a sneer visible on his pointed face. "Pity, I was rather hoping it would be Agent Barton this time." Loki continued before he turned back to his book and paid them no more mind.

Tony, understandably, was slightly insulted. He didn't come all this way to Asgard just to get snubbed by a Viking diva.

"Hey there Rock of Ages, good to see you too, though I would prefer for your situation to be a little more menacing." He said while rocking back and forth on his feet, looking at Loki through the barred door. "Maybe they should slip you into something a little more comfortable… like a coma." He smiled a little as Loki frowned down at his book.

"Ah, Midgardian wit… I can't say that I've missed it. As much as I'm amused by your paltry insults Man of Iron, you can see for yourself that I am very much still here. Perhaps you could go and find something shiny to entertain yourself with? That should keep you and Thor busy for a few hours." Loki said without looking up from his damn book. He was really starting to hate that book, because honestly, what could possibly be more fascinating than him?

Tony was about to say as much, when epiphany struck and he narrowed his eyes instead. He was pretty sure that if he was in Loki's position, he'd be milking his visitors for everything they had, be that information or just a stimulating conversation, anything to break the boredom. But Loki wasn't, in fact he was purposefully pushing them away.

Why?

Motioning for Thor to open the door, he was only met with slight reluctance. "He is still very dangerous Man of Iron, even if Father has locked away most of his magic." Thor whispered not so quietly. After a few more minutes of pushing and prodding though, Tony got his way and he and Thor both entered Loki's cell.

He walked forwards, showing that he had the utmost confidence in what he was doing and Loki just smiled back as he went to touch the God's shoulder. He was not at all surprised to find his hand go through Loki's body. Point Break was though, if his swearing and yelling was anything to go by. The image flickered under his touch for a second and he pulled back, studying his hand. It had felt something, a numbing sensation that was quickly disappearing. '_Is that what magic feels like?_'

"I had wondered who was to be the Avenger that figured out my escape, well done Man of Iron." The fake-Loki said from his position on the chair. "Pray tell, what gave me away?" Tony stuck his hands in his pockets, ignoring Thor and the fading sensation in his hand. Watching as some of the guards ran over each other in their search for Loki. He scoffed at them, because obviously, the God was long gone and had been for a while now.

Fury was going to be... _furious_. Heh.

"Little things like the dust covering your desk. Your book, I'm assuming it's part of the illusion too? Not bad, you holding onto something I thought was solid, the book would automatically make me think you were real. I'm guessing that's why no one felt there was any reason to check until now." He paused as Loki gave him an appraising look and he felt himself smirk in response.

"Also, you were pushing me away too fast. You were so willingly to entertain when imprisoned on the Helicarrier. To _me_, the fact that you wanted us gone was obvious. I was only half sure that you were an illusion; touching you was just the quickest way to prove if my theory was correct." Tony explained and holo-Loki nodded his head, still sporting that smug smile.

"I am impressed mortal, take pride in that." The not-Loki said as he closed his book and stood up. He took a slight step back, just to be cautious. He didn't know what kind of hocus pocus an illusion-Loki could do. "But know this Man of Iron, I will have my revenge." And just like that replica-Loki was gone, leaving nothing behind but a cloud of dust filling the air. Tony reached out, touching the dust and pulled back as the numbing sensation returned. '_Not dust, but particles left over from the spell breaking down._'

The following events were a blur to Tony as he was quickly dragged off by a worried Thor to see the All-Father. "Surely my Father will know what to do Man of Iron. Perhaps Heimdall will be able to lend some assistance as well." Thor explained as they ran through hallways filled with panicking guards and servants.

So there he was, standing before Odin All-Father, who could arguably be the most powerful being in the universe. And honestly, he wasn't that impressed. He'd expected something more intimidating, not some old man in a dress. There was much shouting on Thor's part as he explained what was wrong and he merely stood beside the blonde God, wishing he had his phone on him to fiddle with. He felt very out of his element at the moment.

Not that he was nervous or anything, Tony Stark didn't get nervous; he was just simply… uncomfortable.

"It seems that Loki is far more resourceful than I gave him credit for." Odin said once Thor had finished his explanation. Tony didn't bother to hide his scoff, and just to further live up to his character, he snorted a little as well. He stopped when he realized the heavy silence that had fallen over the audience chamber. Thor shot him a look, but he only had eyes for Odin in that moment.

"You find this amusing, _mortal?_" Odin asked, his tone coming out firm, but nothing close to angry. Gauging the God's reaction, Tony took it as a sign to continue.

"Well, I just find it funny that the _All-Knowing_ Odin underestimated his own kid. I guess I just find it funny that a_ mortal_ had to point out your son's escape." He answered evenly as he looked up at Odin. "Three months and not one of you noticed he was gone? Guess gods aren't so perfect after all. Really, there's a lot of humor here for me to appreciate."

"_So_ _you laugh at me mortal?_" A wise man would have stopped there and might have even apologized for his words, but honestly, who'd ever accused him of being wise? As he looked up at Odin, Tony noticed startling similarities between the King and a certain Director. Namely the eye-patch and the '_don't-even-think-about-fucking-with-me'_ attitude both men seemed to radiate through their glares.

In his opinion, that was more than enough of a reason to dislike the God standing before him.

Fury often went unchecked, tossing around orders and expecting every command to be followed without the slightest hesitation. Tony was proud to be an obstacle that stood in Fury's way. He made the man stop and realize that he wasn't always right and wouldn't always get what he wanted. It looked like Odin could use that reality check too and he was more than happy to oblige.

"No, I'm laughing at the situation in general." Tony said sarcastically before he continued. "Maybe if you hadn't underestimated Loki in the first place, _none of this_ would have happened." He gestured to the city outside, referring to a lot more than just the current situation before he turned to look back at Odin. He didn't see the warning looks Thor was sending at his back nor did he notice the way Odin's stance suddenly became rigid. "Loki's brain is a bag of cats; I just figured his daddy would know him better."

'_And maybe,_' Tony continued silently to himself, '_I'm projecting my father issues in his stead._' Because truthfully, that's what he really saw when he looked at Odin. Not the God King of a bunch of space Vikings or a double of Nick Fury, but rather a Howard Stark who'd lived to see old age. There was just something about Odin, maybe it was the position of power, the reverence that others had for him. Maybe it was the way Odin had talked down to him.

Whatever the case, the All-Father reminded him of Howard, and Tony hated him for that.

The look of outrage on Odin's face was only slightly surprising to see, but he smiled up at the God just the same. He could annoy anyone, be it the _can-do-no-wrong _Capsicle, the _always-in-control_ Fury, or the _All-Knowing_ Odin. There was no person whose skin he couldn't get under. Admittedly, he took a little more satisfaction from this ability then he probably should. He turned away from Odin to address Thor about going back to Midgard as quickly as possible, when he suddenly felt something sharp drive into his back.

It was pain. It burned into him, into his skin, into his bloodstream, into his very bones.

Tony screamed.

He had fallen to his knees at some point, hardly paying attention to anything besides the burning that burrowed deeper into his body. It was if the Arc Reactor was poisoning him all over, palladium was pounding through his veins and his body was breaking down. There was something digging into his chest, maybe it was the shrapnel finally claiming his life _and oh god, please make it stop!_ He could barely hear someone, – _Odin_ – yelling over his screams as another voice, – _Thor_ – whispered soft, but worried words into his ear.

Before he could pass out from the pain, Tony saw Odin glowering down at him with a look of hatred that didn't remind of him of either Fury or Howard. No, instead it made him think of someone who was much worse. In that moment, the God King reminded him of Obadiah Stane more than anybody else ever could.

'_And maybe,_' he thought weakly, '_I should have quit while I was ahead._'

~One Insult Too Many~

Thor looked up from his now unconscious comrade to his Father, who looked more enraged than the day of his banishment. It was understandable, the Man of Iron had said terrible things, but Thor knew better than to talk them to heart. His Father, however, did not understand the Man of Iron like he did and the God of Thunder was certain that the Son of Stark meant no true hurt with his words.

"Father, what have you done?" He whispered worriedly as the Man of Iron's body shifted frantically in his hold. His hands tightened as the mortal gave a pitiful whine. He'd seen this man fly to his death and Thor knew how much strength it took to do that. Yet here the mortal was, reduced to shameful cries. His heart ached at knowing that his Father was the cause of such pain.

Thor would admit that he was not very close to the Man of Iron, but he was an ally and a friend. He had sworn that Midgard and all who dwelled there were under his protection, including the human who now writhed under his hands. And it hurt him to see his friend like this, to know that his Father would ignore his vow so blatantly. Were his words and oaths so meaningless in the eyes of his king?

"I have castigated the impudent mortal for his tongue. No being, be it Asgardian or Midgardian, can insult I and not be punished." The God King said as he moved away from the accursed mortal and his son. Never had another being insulted him so, not even Laufeyson. The mortal deserved death for his deliberate mockery, but Odin had managed to stay his hand. He had only spared the foul Midgardian for he knew that the Man of Iron had saved his sons' lives, he owed the human a debt that had just been recompensed.

"This is not right Father, the Man of Iron held no true intent to cause you harm with his words, merely to annoy and aggravate. It is a game of his, much like Loki's… He is my comrade, my ally." Thor argued, wanting to demand for his Father to undo whatever spell he had cast. He knew not to though, that would only make the All-Father angrier than he already was.

"You dare question me, of my rights to retribution?" Odin roared from his place near his throne. Thor flinching was enough of an action to stall his rage slightly. He did not wish to yell at his son, but the mortal's words had cut deeper than any blade ever had.

Loki, oh how he had failed his youngest son. And to have this mortal throw those failures back into his face? It was more than Odin could stand for.

Thor was about to speak again, when his attention was abruptly brought back to the Son of Stark, who had never once stopped struggling in his grip. His comrade's body seemed to cave in on itself, growing smaller with each passing second. Bones shifted and cracked as black fur started to grow, hiding his skin from view.

In a matter of moments the Man of Iron had lost his mortal form and instead took the appearance of a very small four legged Midgardian creature Thor believed to be called a cat. Gently, he picked up his transformed friend into hands, worried at how tiny of a creature the mortal was now. A glow reflected off the Man of Iron's chest, proving that the creature he held was indeed Tony Stark.

"Leave for Midgard Thor, warn them of Loki's escape. I will have Heimdall search through every realm, through every planet, to find your brother." Thor knew that was his dismissal, that any chance he had of convincing his Father to return the mortal to his normal state was gone for the moment. He brought the Man of Iron close to his chest, his massive hands hiding the small creature from his Father's piercing sight.

"What am I to tell my comrades as to what has happened to the Man of Iron?" Thor asked as he rose up and turned his back on his Father. The only action he could show without reprimand that truly displayed how upset he was towards Odin.

"I do not care Thor."

It was moments later that he arrived on Midgard with a heavy heart as he made his way to the Tower of Stark, still holding the mortal close to him. Thor was not looking forward to confronting his friends about what his Father had done, but he dreaded the moment that the Son of Stark would awaken. He knew the Man of Iron was a very proud Midgardian. To be reduced to such a state would be a great blow to the mortal's vanity, a blow that the mortal did not deserve. While he had spoken out of turn, the mortal had said nothing that wasn't the truth.

And what a painful truth it was.

His Father was not the only one who had failed Loki, he had failed as well. He had failed to be a kinder brother. He had failed to save Loki from falling into darkness. And finally, he'd failed to help his brother heal during his imprisonment.

Thor reached his destination after a good bit of walking, as he did not wish to fly for fear of dropping his diminutive friend. His journey was interrupted several times as many mortals ran up to greet him. Having been a prince all his life, he knew how to handle such large and cheering crowds, but the mortals still managed to delay him quite a bit. By the time he reached the Tower of Stark, the sun had already begun to set.

As Thor was about to enter the Man of Iron's home, the sounds of honking and screaming reached the God's ears and he turned his head to see a vehicle, a bus he believed Jane had called it, careening through the intersection. Cries for help blared from the speeding machine and Thor hesitated only for a second before he placed the Man of Iron on a piece of cardboard just inside a nearby alleyway.

"Please do not move from this spot my friend, I will return as quickly as I am able." He said urgently to a still unconscious Tony Stark before using Mjolnir to chase after the bus.

~One Insult Too Many~

Tony awoke to the worst headache he'd had in a long while. He grunted to himself, the noises sounding like high pitched whimpering to his ears and ceased the action immediately. There was no reason to sound like a wimp if Pepper wasn't there to fuss over him. He sluggishly brought himself into a sitting position, not even bothering to stand at this point as he was already beginning to feel dizzy and off balance.

God, what the hell did he drink last night and where could he get more of it?

Tony slowly opened his eyes as the dizziness began to fade and blinked owlishly at his surroundings. There had been many times in his life where he'd woken up to find that he had no idea where he was, waking up in a gutter was a first for him though. Turning his brown eyes over the alleyway, he realized that he must be sitting in a ditch or something because _everything_ towered over him.

The smell of garbage and other unpleasant things burned into his nose. He'd never smelt anything so awful, it was so overpowering that it made his headache ever worse. Always one for the dramatics, he made some very loud and obnoxious gagging noises. He was pleased with how the effect turned out, he sounded like he was coughing up a hairball.

Deciding he had enough fun of lying in a dirty alleyway, Tony pushed himself up to stand, only to tumble back down to the ground immediately. '_What the hell? I must have hit the bar hard last night._' He thought before trying to stand up again, only to end up falling over once more. Looking down at himself to see what the problem was, he was met with the odd sight of four furry legs.

The yell that came from his mouth was far from sounding human.

Panicked, Tony tumbled backwards, as if he were trying to escape the furry legs that were apparently attached to him. Backing into a pile of cardboard pizza boxes did nothing except get His fur, – _Fur, I'm covered in fucking fur!_ – coated in pizza sauce and greasy cheese. It took a few seconds for him to realize that he was hissing and making unintelligible grunts that sounded like high pitched whines.

He didn't stop though; his situation demanded a total freak-out.

"_I'm a fucking cat!_ _I'm a fucking cat!_ _I'm a fucking __CAT!_" He repeated out loud, though his words only came out as distressed meows. '_Okay calm down, think, what the fuck happened?_' And then it all came back to him, the trip to Asgard, Loki's escape, and… Odin. "_**That one-eyed bastard! **__He turned me into a fucking cat!_" Oh, when he found Odin, he'd be having some words with the God.

Nobody fucked with him and got away with it.

Tony was too busy stewing in his anger to notice that something had crawled out from behind a nearby dumpster and was heading towards him. A smell, a nasty one, reached his small nose and his hackles rose on instinct.

"_Oh God, what the fuck is that smell?_" His question was answered by the sound of a deep growl. "_Oh shit._" He quickly turned around and saw a giant mangy looking dog, eyeing him with the same look he got when it came to whiskey. Or blueberries, he really like those.

"_Hey, what's up Cujo?_" He asked as he slowly backed away from the dog as its growl deepened. "_Okay, if you promise not to eat me now, I swear I'll come back when I'm human and buy you enough prime rib to last a lifetime._" He tried to reason, but the larger animal gave no sign that it had understood what he had said.

The dog charged forward and Tony bounded out of the alleyway, running as fast as his short and clumsy legs could take him. As he ran, the sound of honking and yelling penetrated his fear clouded mind, and he looked up to see a giant tire attached to a taxi heading straight towards him.

He froze. There were no thoughts in his head, no biting words cursing Odin with everything he had. There was just fear, pure unadulterated dread. _He was going to end up as road kill!_

The taxi swerved at the last moment and the resounding crash of it hitting a nearby streetlight shook Tony out of his deer-in-front-of-the-headlights moment. He continued his running, barreling past the gawking crowds, as he heard the barking get louder. He wasn't sure how long he ran; he just knew that by the time he stopped and hid in a new alley that night had fallen. He collapsed on the ground, cursing Thor, Odin, Loki and every other Norse God to ever exist.

Where was Thor anyway? Why had he been in that alleyway? What was he going to do?

"_The Avengers, if I can get back to the Tower I can contact the others. Thor will show up sooner or later and then he can fix what his fucked up dad did._" He said out loud as he looked down at the Arc Reactor in his chest. It would be enough to get his teammates' attention and from there Thor could explain what happened. Never before had Tony been so happy to have his Arc Reactor than right now.

Unfortunately, finding his Tower was a hell of a lot more difficult than he'd originally thought.

Everything looked so different from his new point of view and the crowds of people were a pain in the ass to get through as he now had to avoid getting stepped on. It wasn't until he had found a street sign that he realized just how far away he was from Stark Tower. The journey would take a couple of hours at least and he had the feeling that this trip wouldn't be anything like Homeward Bound.

And of course, after an hour of walking, it started to rain cats and dogs.

Tony was pretty sure that old saying had something to do with Odin and he cursed the God King once again as he was forced to run through the downpour. He took shelter in another alleyway, hiding under a stack of boxes and looking thoroughly miserable. Eventually he curled up into a ball, shivering as he slipped into an uneasy sleep.

His nightmares consisted of Loki laughing, and then Odin appeared only to turn into Obie, who was tearing the Arc Reactor out of his chest. The man's words ringing in his ears. – _When I ordered the hit on you, I was worried that I was killing the golden goose. _– Obie, please don't do this to me – _A new generation of weapons, _– the Arc Reactor was hovering in front of his face, just out of reach –_ with this at its heart. _

A flash of lightning and the crack of thunder woke Tony from his less than restful sleep. Hunger made itself known, but the billionaire refused to scrounge through the trash like he _really was_ an alley cat. He eventually had to move deeper into the alley, as his shelter had become soaked and had started to drip water on top of his still damp head.

Again, Tony found that he was not alone in the alleyway and this guy was just about as welcoming as Cujo had been. A rather large and ugly looking rat stared down at him from its spot on top of the trashcans. The rat launched itself at him and Tony yelped as he felt its' claws dig into his left side. It hissed and screeched and he was once again forced to run away from a larger attacker. His side burned with every step he took, but it was better than being eaten.

"_Of course I just have to run into the largest fucking rat in New York City, the damn thing is the size of a raccoon!_" He yelled as he ran away, again. "_And of course Odin has to turn me into a fucking kitten. Talk about adding insult to injury, as if being an adult cat wouldn't have been degrading enough!_"

At this time of night, and considering the rain, Tony hadn't expected to find another living creature out on the sidewalk. Sure enough though, he almost ran straight into a pair of human shaped legs as he took a sharp turn to escape his pursuer. He hid behind the pair of legs as Ratzilla came around the corner and paused at seeing the larger creature in front of Tony.

With a few threatening hisses he took to mean as "_You come near my shit again and I will fuck you up!" _Ratzilla turned around to return from whence it came. Sighing in relief, Tony took a second to let his heart rate return back to normal.

"_Thanks for the save pal. I gotta tell ya, ending up as Ratzilla's meal would have been worst way to die ever._" He said tiredly as he looked up at his would-be rescuer. He froze at the sight of those intense green eyes that were looking down at him. Sure, the God was in a normal enough suit and had cut his hair, but Tony would recognize those crazy green eyes anywhere.

Loki.

_Holy fucking shit_.

Before Tony could even take a step backwards, he was scooped off the ground and hanging in the air within the blink of an eye. Loki had grabbed him by the fur on the back of his neck, pinching it hard enough to make him cringe. His brown eyes looked into Loki's green ones, desperately hoping for a bout of lightning to strike the God where he stood.

A long pale finger came up and tapped against the mini Arc Reactor in his chest and Tony knew that he was caught from the way that Reindeer Games glared at him.

"It would seem you've managed to get yourself into quite a bit of trouble, Anthony Stark." Loki said as he smirked at him and gave the former human a harsh shake, renewing the pain in his injuries. He was utterly appalled at the weak sounding meow that escaped his throat. Loki laughed mockingly and Tony didn't know if he wanted to curl up into a ball of shame or scratch the God's eyes out.

He chose the latter.

He reached out and struck at Loki with his new cat-like reflexes. Unfortunately, his small limbs weren't long enough to reach the God's face. Another thing he forgot to factor in was that he was indeed a kitten and a kitten's claws were far from impressive. The tiny nails got stuck in the fabric of the green scarf Loki was wearing. After several feeble attempts of trying to free his paws, he reluctantly looked up at Loki for help. The God was smiling haughtily and as he pried Tony's small paws out of his scarf, he knew his pride could sink no lower.

"Come Stark, we have much catching up to do, you and I." Loki said as he stalked down the street holding an umbrella in one hand and a bleeding, fur-soaked Tony Stark in the other.

~One Insult Too Many~

The phrase "raining cats and dogs" has no definitive origin. In fact there are several different theories to what the phrase might have meant at one point of time.

One supposed origin is that the phrase derives from mythology. Dogs and wolves were attendants to Odin, the god of storms, and sailors associated them with rain. Witches, who often took the form of their familiars - cats, are supposed to have ridden the winds. Somehow, they put the two together and got that.

Anyways, I hope that you liked the chapter and that you're looking forward to more. Please leave a review to tell me what you think!

~Hexalys~


	2. Sleeping In The Rain

I want to thank everyone who took the time to review!

Also, please note that I revised the last chapter, no new information was really added, I simply improved the grammar and spelling. I also want to reiterate that his story is not a Tony/Loki slash fic. So sorry to disappoint if that's what you were hoping for.

Oh wow, look at that, words! Well since I put them there you might as well read them.

~One Insult Too Many~

Chapter 2: Sleeping In The Rain

Pepper was worried.

It was nearing midnight and yet there was still no sign of Tony. She realized that her boss had a tendency to get distracted when something caught his eye, but this was pushing it, even for him. She had called S.H.I.E.L.D., who told her Tony hadn't returned from Asgard yet, but that they would let her know when he did. Bruce had come to join her in the living room as they waited for S.H.I.E.L.D.'s call.

Pepper liked Bruce. He had moved into the tower after the Chitauri invasion and was more than welcome in her opinion. At first she had been nervous to let the man stay for obvious reasons, but he proved to be an invaluable ally when it came to managing Tony. Bruce was more than happy to help her with getting Tony to eat or sleep when he was experiencing one of his breakthroughs.

Plus, Tony could use more friends besides herself, Happy and Rhodey.

A little after eleven, Natasha had shown up with Clint to wait with them as the duo's mission had been completed hours ago. Pepper welcomed them warmly, having met with them frequently as Stark Tower had seemed to become something of a motel for the passing Avenger, Bruce was the only one who actually lived in the Tower. The only ones not there were Captain America and Thor. Thor wasn't there for obvious reasons and Steve was MIA because… well… Tony wouldn't have appreciated it if she had called him.

Pepper knew that Tony still didn't like Steve very much, or at all really. Therefore it was a complete surprise to her when Jarvis announced that Steve Rogers was on his way up. Steve explained that he'd received a call from headquarters telling him about Tony's lateness and had thought it best to see the situation for himself. Pepper was silently thankful for the support and she nervously waited with the others for any news of Tony.

It was moments like these that were the reason for why Pepper had broken it off with Tony. This feeling of hopelessness, of not knowing what had happened, literally ate at her insides. So she had said that she'd had enough, that she was done with Iron Man. And Tony had just stepped back and let her go, smiling that broken smile of his; sleeping with the first blond he could get his hands on.

She had tried dating others, but none of them made her feel the way Tony had. She refused to go back to him though, it was too painful.

She just wanted to move on, to find a man who didn't fight terrorists and fly nuclear missiles into space at the cost of his own life. She wanted a man who remembered her birthday or that she was severely allergic to strawberries. She wanted a man who didn't keep secrets from her, who didn't try to drink himself into an early grave.

"_Miss Potts, Mr. Odinson is coming up in the elevator now._" Jarvis said to the full room and she felt her heart plummet as blood raced in her ears.

_Just Thor? _

Wasn't Tony supposed to be with him?

"Isn't Tony with him?" Pepper asked, even though she knew he wasn't, Jarvis would have told her if he was. She felt Bruce grip her shoulder tighter from where he stood behind her, offering her his silent support. Thank god for Bruce, she wasn't sure how she could have handled this waiting all alone.

"_No, Miss Potts._" Jarvis answered, sounding solemn as he delivered the news. It always amazed her how human the AI could act and sound, but then again he'd been made by Tony. Everything that man invented was amazing.

As the elevator dinged, Pepper couldn't help but think about all the things that could have possibly gone wrong. Had Tony even reached Asgard or had there been an accident while using the Tesseract? Was he now stranded on some distant alien planet that no one could find? Had Loki escaped and taken Tony hostage?

For once, she prayed that Tony was just being his irresponsible self. That he had simply decided to stay longer to study Asgard's technology further or that he had decided to bed an actual goddess. She didn't care what selfish thing it was, just so long as it meant that Tony wasn't hurt.

Thor walked into the room, soaked from the thunderstorm outside and looking utterly defeated as Mjolnir hung awkwardly in his grip. As Pepper made eye contact with the God of Thunder, she knew something awful had happened. His blue eyes broke away first, spiraling down towards the floor and she was almost too afraid to ask what happened.

"Where is he Thor?"

~One Insult Too Many~

Being manhandled by Loki wasn't exactly a new experience for Tony. The God _had_ thrown him out of a window the last time they'd met face to face. Of course, his current situation was very different from a few months ago.

One obvious fact was that he'd been human at the time; another was that the Avengers had known where he was and had been on their way. This time he was on his own, there were no Avengers assembling and there was no Iron Man suit coming to save him.

Tony struggled weakly in Loki's grip, already feeling the exhaustion from today's events taking their toll on his small body. Plus, he really didn't want to fall to the ground from his current height. If the landing didn't break one of his legs, then the fall would certainly worsen his Ratzilla wounds. Loki also had very little patience for his constant fidgeting, if the last rough shake was anything to go by.

Eventually he did stop moving, preferring to curl up into a small ball instead to contain his body heat. It was nearing the end of summer, so the weather was still relatively warm, but Tony felt frozen at the moment. The cold rain had soaked him to the bone and the 40 mph winds didn't help one bit.

He wasn't sure how long the walk was as he had, embarrassingly, nodded off at one point. He'd woken up to the sound of buzzing and found himself inside a dry building as Loki carried him up a flight of stairs. They entered a room, which Tony guessed to be Loki's current hideout. The flat was large and well-furnished, making him suspect that they were located in the classier part of New York.

Loki propped his umbrella up against the door before taking off his soaked trench coat and hung it up on a nearby coat rack. Not once did he drop Tony, merely switching the kitten between his hands as he shifted out of the dark fabric.

As they moved further into the flat, Tony was greeted to the sight of a decent sized living room with hardwood floors and warm cream painted walls. There was one long black leather sofa and a matching recliner set up in front of a moderately sized plasma TV that hung on the wall.

The living room connected to the kitchen, which was a wide open space filled with all the newest and up-to-date appliances. Dark wooden cabinets matched the floors and the countertops were made from granite that had a soft grey color. There was no dinner table, but a breakfast bar countertop that came out of the wall, separating the kitchen and the living room slightly.

There was a hallway off to the side, no doubt leading to the bedroom and bathroom, but Loki steered them towards the breakfast bar instead. From the corner of his eye, Tony saw Loki wave his hand as he mumbled a few weird sounding words. Suddenly, a cage appeared on the counter.

Tony shivered as he was brought towards it and renewed his pointless struggling. Besides the cage being small, there was no blanket inside, nothing there to soften the metal bars that made up the floor of the small pen. It looked horrible and it was all his.

Well wasn't that _fan-fucking-tastic_.

The cage, unfortunately, brought back less than welcomed memories from his time in Afghanistan. In his earliest days of his imprisonment, when he still had that fucking car battery attached to his chest, his captors had to pick his punishments carefully. Anything involving water or electricity had been out of the question for either could accidently short circuit his crude life support.

His torso had also been sworn off from physical punishment to avoid speeding up the process of the shrapnel buried inside of his chest. His hands were obviously off-limits too as he needed them to build their weapons. With those options gone, the worst physical contact Tony got was the occasional backhand across his face for his mouth.

Of course the Ten Rings, being the professional terrorists that they were, had a solution to the no-touchy rule already setup on base. The Furnace, as many of his captors had affectionately called it, was a Sweatbox and a very crude one at that.

Yinsen had called it a glimpse into hell.

It had been small, barely giving him enough room to sit in. His head had constantly brushed against the ceiling and his legs were always bent at awkward angles in order to fit. The Sweatbox had been made out of six thin metal sheets that had been fused together by an amateur with a blowtorch. A small hole, about the size of a golf ball, had been cut into the bottom sheet for ventilation. When inside, the Furnace was completely pitch black, forcing Tony to guess what the time was by how much the temperature progressively changed.

During the day the Furnace reached temperatures that he clocked at about a hundred and twenty degrees, sometimes higher. The metal walls became so hot that any skin touching them was burned. The burns would then blister and eventually pop if you had the misfortune to touch them against a wall again, and considering the size of the Furnace, Tony did that quite a lot.

At night the desert's cold was biting and just as unwelcomed as the day's heat, reaching temperatures in the high thirties and below. Tony had spent his nights shivering as he'd tried to warm himself up and keep his blood flowing. The metal sheets that had absorbed the sun's heat so well, proved to be an excellent conductor for the night's cold.

Tony did his best to not fall asleep when he'd been locked in the Furnace as there had always been a pretty good chance that he wouldn't wake up.

The guards made sure to bring him enough water so that he wouldn't die, but he was still left dangerously dehydrated. The bastards didn't even bring him cold water. It was always hot and just a few degrees below boiling. He couldn't wait for the water to cool down; the heat inside the Furnace would make the water evaporate too quickly.

In order to survive, he'd forced himself to drink the almost boiling water and it had seared his throat and mouth, leaving him to stew in even more pain. Drinking and eating anything was so painful at times that Tony went for days without nourishment. Yinsen would force him to eat after a certain point, doing his best to accommodate Tony by liquefying the food as much as possible, making it easier for him to swallow.

He would have died so many times if it hadn't been for Yinsen.

The longest they had ever left Tony in the Furnace was for four days, giving him bits of food and little water. Of course even that little bit of nourishment had been enough for his digestive system to work. He had been smart enough to make use of the hole in the Furnace to piss out of, but that didn't really help with problem number two. The smell of his waste burning from the sun's heat had been enough to make him retch, which of course had made his prison smell even worse.

After that, he'd made sure to be less of a smartass to his captors.

Tony was torn out of his memories as Loki tossed him into the cage hard enough for him to hit the other end of his prison; his injured side hitting the fucking bars. There was nothing he could do to prepare himself for the latest bout of pain and once again he meowed out loud, sounding exactly like the pitiful creature Odin had turned him into.

"_Fuck you Odin. I hope you die in the most humiliating way and then burn in hell for all eternity._" Tony groaned pathetically as he curled up into a ball. He heard Loki scoff, but he really couldn't bring himself to care at the moment.

He was tired, hungry, and bleeding. There were only two things he wanted right now, his humanity and a bottle of scotch.

~One Insult Too Many~

Loki looked down at his unexpected captive, his pleased smirk had somewhat dissipated, but every now and then he could feel the corners of his mouth twitch upward uncontrollably. He had of course planned to have his vengeance on the Avengers; it was just nice that for once, fate seemed to have favored him.

And what a curious situation fate had brought about.

It had taken Loki a little over two months by Midgardian standards to make his escape. The binds the All-Father had placed on him were strong and kept his power out of reach, bubbling furiously just beneath his skin, aching to be used.

After Agent Romanoff's inspection he had set his plans into motion. The small amounts of magic he'd been gathering during his imprisonment were just enough to make his clone and to teleport him to Earth using the hidden ways that were still blind to Heimdall. Of course, such actions had used up most of his reserved magic.

The binds were regrettably still on him to this day. They were powerful and of Odin's making, invisible shackles made of nothing but magic.

In the weeks of his recent freedom, he had been forced to once again build up his magical reserves. It had only been recently that Loki began to use this stored magic to chisel away at his bindings. The process was slow and provided little progress, but it was his only option at present. In the recent month of his recuperating, he managed to free little more than two tenths of his original powers.

It was pathetic and humiliating to being reduced to such a weakened state, forced to resort to novice spells, a mockery of the great sorcerer he'd once been.

Using his spells Loki had managed to set-up a decent living, his illusions creating false Midgardian currency to pay for his current living quarters and needs. He'd picked this building as it was based a few mere blocks away from Stark Tower, the only known location of one of the Avengers. Loki had placed himself in the perfect position to spy on his enemy so that he would know if his escape had been discovered.

And while Loki planned to have his revenge on Thor and his allies, retribution wasn't his main concern at present; disappearing was his first priority. Heimdall's all-seeing gaze wasn't the only pair of eyes Loki had to be wary of now.

The Chitauri would be after him as well.

Any spell he casted was just another beacon for the Other to find and use to trace back to him and Loki knew he was not strong enough to protect himself if the Chitauri should truly wish him dead. Not only did they overwhelm him in numbers, he knew they possessed magics that he couldn't even begin to fathom.

A soft meow interrupted his thoughts and he looked down at the creature that had made the noise. He narrowed his eyes at the former human who huddled in the corner of the cage, looking back at him with those oddly shaped eyes. They were brown and perfectly human looking, lacking the vertical slits Loki had come to see the Midgardian species possess.

He knew it was Odin who had cursed the mortal; the All-Father's magic still lingered on the human as it was a rather powerful enchantment. The question is, what had the mortal done to earn such an uncommon sentence from Odin? From a king who hated magic as much as his people?

Loki cast another spell, though this one affected his own person. It was a simple communication spell so that he would be able to understand the human turned beast. After all, what was the point in having a prisoner if one couldn't hear their pleas for mercy?

"I should have you know, Stark, that the All-Father rarely uses magic as a way of punishment, you must have done something truly treacherous." Loki said as he studied his small captive.

"_Yeah, well I guess your dad isn't used to others telling him things he doesn't want to hear. At least now I can see where you got your crazy from._" Tony shot back as he inspected the cuts on his side, not really expecting to get an answer.

"He is _**not**_ my Father!" Loki semi-shouted making Tony jump and aggravate his cuts.

"_Wait- you can understand me?_" Tony asked as he looked up at Loki and the God simply nodded in response. "_Is that an Asgardian thing or a Loki thing?_" Loki spared him a sneer before he answered.

"It is a spell Stark, a minor one that even the most simplistic fool could cast."

"_Huh, well it's good to know that at least someone will have the privilege to bask in my staggering intelligence. As for what I did, I simply told the All-Fucker how pathetic it was that he hadn't realized you had escaped. Next thing I know, I'm alone in an alleyway, six inches tall and covered in fuzz._" Tony said bitterly.

"You actually called Odin pathetic to his person? And he let you live?" Loki asked in surprise as he raised a narrow eyebrow at the once human. "No being insults Odin and comes out of it still breathing."

"_I also laughed at his face and said that he had shitty parenting skills._" Tony continued as he puffed up his chest in pride. So he was a cat now, that didn't mean he still didn't get an ego boost at surviving something others apparently hadn't. Loki graced him with a less than impressed look.

"If that is indeed the case, then he must have owed you a great debt, forcing him spare your miserable life." Loki mused out loud. "How you could have obtained such a debt though…"

"…_Maybe it was because I saved yours' and Thor's lives?_" Tony said and Loki jerked his head in surprise before he turned towards Tony. He took the Gods expressionless face as a sign to continue. "_You may not know this, since you were too busy licking your Hulk wounds, but S.H.I.E.L.D. had unleashed a Nuclear Warhead on New York. That weapon would have eradicated everything for miles and that includes you and Thor. I sent it through the portal instead, saving your life while simultaneously destroying the Chitauri._"

Loki's knuckles turned white while he knotted his hands into fists as a terrible feeling of dread began to build in the back of his mind. No, he had not known this, which just made everything worse. He had assumed that the Avengers had simply closed the portal, but if what Stark said was true and that they had managed to deal such a blow to the Chitauri, then Loki's head would be far more sought after than he'd originally feared.

They would come after him now for the sheer pleasure of hearing his screams.

"_You okay there Reindeer Games? You look like someone just shoved your helmet up your ass._" Tony asked as he resisted the urge to shift uncomfortably in his cage. He was calm and cool, he never got nervous or… afraid. "_Hey look, I know this might be a bad time for you, but you know, if you could make me my handsome human self again, I'd really appreciate it._"

It was silent for a few minutes as Loki seemed to stare at the wall in thought and Tony felt his hackles rise in silent warning. He didn't like being this close to Loki as it would be all too easy for the God to take a dagger and try out that old saying that involved the many ways one could skin a cat. Just when he was about to make sure Loki hadn't fallen asleep on him, the God shifted his attention back to him.

Loki's answer was dark and not unexpected, but it was definitely not what Tony wanted to hear.

"No Stark, I don't think I will. If what you say is true, then you are the one responsible for my failure to conquer Midgard. No, I want you to suffer… and I know that retuning you to your normal state would be doing the opposite." Loki said as he stood up and walked towards the hallway. He glanced backwards and Tony inwardly shivered at the icy glare the God was giving him. "I promise you, your punishment has only just begun Stark."

And with that ominous threat hanging in the air, Loki shut off the lights, leaving Tony to stare after him in the dark.

~One Insult Too Many~

Bruce sighed as he rubbed at his tired eyes; because boy did Tony get himself into a lot of trouble this time. Bruce liked to think that he had an open mind, and considering he was able to turn into a giant green rage monster, he used to think that nothing could surprise him anymore.

True the Tesseract and the fact that Norse Gods actually existed as aliens was unexpected, but it hadn't surprised Bruce as much as it should have. This though, the idea that Tony was _actually a cat_, was simply too mind-boggling of a concept for him to accept at face value.

After Thor had finished his explanation on what happened to Tony, Pepper had promptly fainted, a first Jarvis had assured them. Bruce had set her up on the couch, waiting nearby in case something else happened to his favorite redhead. Tony was his dearest friend and Pepper was quickly becoming a close second. They had both accepted him into their home and treated him like a person, not like a bomb just waiting to go off.

Not like a monster.

The other Avengers were still shaky around him. Clint and Natasha acted calm often enough, but he noticed the subtle ways their stances changed whenever he displayed a sign of irritation. An aggravated sigh, a nervous twitch, the slightest tone of annoyance in his voice whenever Tony got on his last nerves, any of these motions were taken as a possible threat by the two assassins.

He could understand why of course. Natasha had seen him on one of his worst days. She'd been afraid of him in Calcutta; he couldn't imagine how she felt towards him after the Helicarrier incident. And it was no secret that Clint and Natasha were a packaged deal, it was rare to see one without the other. Bruce had no doubts that Clint had come to fear him through Natasha's own trepidation.

Steve seemed to walk on eggshells whenever Bruce was in the room. The man sugar-coated everything, and treated him like a child on the verge of a temper tantrum. As much as he liked Steve, and even though he understood the reasons, Bruce couldn't help but feel some irritation towards the super soldier.

Thor… well the God of Thunder didn't seem to really care at all about the Other Guy.

While Thor's indifference was refreshing and welcomed, the God had mostly been on Asgard since the invasion, only coming to Earth to pick up another Avenger or to see his girl. The God had proven that he could hold his own in a fight against the Other Guy though, so Bruce guessed that was why Thor wasn't too nervous.

Tony was the only Avenger who was never worried, who never treated Bruce anything other than a friend, even when he _was_ the Other Guy. It was… nice to know at least one person would always have his back, but Tony was the one who needed help right now.

Their teammate was lost somewhere out there in New York City, probably confused at how he had suddenly become a cat and Bruce wanted to help, but how was he supposed to find one stray feline in a city as large as New York?

Once they found Tony, how were they supposed to change him back to normal?

"We need to tell Fury." Steve said after a few moments and Bruce could almost imagine all the insults Tony would have whipped up as a response. The deafening silence following Steve's statement was too tense, too uncomfortable.

It may have just been him, but the team didn't feel like a team at the moment.

Tony was the one who broke the ice, who put everyone at ease around each other. As Natasha sent him another measuring glance, Bruce began to think that he may have underestimated Tony's importance on the team. Tony had a calming effect on not just Bruce, but on everyone else as well.

There was just something about the genius playboy that made everyone get along well enough, except when it came to him and Steve that is. Bruce also knew that the Other Guy had a soft spot for the infuriating man. Without Tony there to run interference, the others seemed to be even more on edge around him, like he'd suddenly turned into a hungry wolf that had lost its handler and was reverting back to its primal instincts.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. should be able to help find Stark; they have eyes all over the place." Steve continued, bringing Bruce out of his thoughts. Natasha and Clint unsurprisingly nodded their heads in agreement. "We also have to start searching for Loki, immediately."

"Let's just hope that Fury doesn't consider finding Loki to be our first priority. I don't care what Loki might be planning at the moment, Tony comes first." Bruce said firmly as he ignored the nervous shifting the others made or the way that Natasha discreetly reached for her gun. '_I miss you already Tony._' He thought gloomily and he could feel the Other Guy agree with him in the back of his mind.

"Indeed my friend, finding the Man of Iron should be our main concern." Thor said as he nodded his head, oblivious to the tension that plagued the other Avengers. Bruce sent Thor a grateful smile which the God returned slightly. He suspected that Thor felt guilty for what had happened to Tony, which was understandable. Bruce was sure he'd feel guilty if he was in Thor's position.

"Of course Stark comes first Bruce." Steve agreed delicately and he was slightly bothered by the fact that Tony was still addressed as Stark by Steve. As far as he knew, Tony was the only Avenger Steve still called by their last name. Bruce knew there was bad blood between the two men; he also knew that the issue ran deeper than that for Tony. Steve just didn't seem to like Tony's personality in general.

Pepper slowly started to wake and as Bruce made his way towards her, he just hoped that Tony was safe, wherever he was.

~One Insult Too Many~

Tony was nestled in the corner of his cage that Loki, that creepy sadistic bastard, had been so accommodating to make. With nothing to distract him, the cuts in his side seemed to get worse with every passing moment. Eventually he did the only thing that would help, even if the action disgusted him to no end.

He was reduced to literally licking his wounds.

The saliva had seeped into his cuts and cleaned the blood from his slightly matted fur. The logical part of his brain continuously pointed out the fact that saliva carried enzymes which fought off bacteria. So even though it was gross as hell and stung like a bitch, Tony continued to disinfect his wounds as best he could.

After an hour, his new ears picked up the sound of Loki's soft snoring and he moved to examine the latch to his cage. He really, really needed to find a way out of Loki's clutches and get back to his tower. He didn't want to go through torture again, three months with the Ten Rings was enough to last a lifetime.

The latch on the cage was one those pinch locks which was going to be difficult to use seeing as his paws lacked the thumbs needed to operate them, that didn't stop the billionaire genius from trying though. Two hours later Tony stopped after getting his right paw stuck in the latch for twenty minutes. Accepting defeat for the moment, he went back to his corner and curled up into a ball, his side aching slightly but no longer bleeding.

Tony waited for sleep to come as boredom set in. He usually never had to wait to fall asleep as he often worked himself into exhaustion. Insomnia was a real pain in the ass, but one Tony had been unable to get rid ever since his stint in Afghanistan. And really, even before that he'd always had trouble sleeping. It was hard to shut his brain down.

Still, his sleepless nights weren't all that bad most of the time, as he always had his lab to turn to in those long hours of restlessness. Some of his best ideas had come from those times where he'd gone without sleeping the day or two before. Besides, Pepper had always made sure to get him into bed when he'd finally started to crash.

Oh, Pepper.

Tony wondered if Thor had told the others what had happened to him yet. Bruce would of course tell Pepper, who would promptly freak-out and probably swear that she'd kick Odin's ass for what he'd done, then she'd promise to kick _his_ _ass_ for instigating the God in the first place. On second thought, maybe it was a good thing he wasn't with Pepper at the moment. It was usually best to let her cool down for a day or two before letting her claws sink into him.

The sounds of groaning and shifting bed sheets caught his attention and he turned to the direction of Loki's room, ears perking as he listened carefully. A nightmare, Tony figured from the way that Loki's groans steadily grew louder. There were mumbled words of "I could have done it father" and repeated shouts of "tell me" or "why". The yells steadily got louder, to the point that if felt like Loki was screaming those words into his ears.

It was… disturbing. Loki sounded so destroyed, like his world had just been torn out from under him. It was surreal, it was pathetic and yet, somehow, it made Tony feel sick and his skin itched awkwardly. His teeth gnashed into each other and he buried his paws into his ears, trying to block out Loki's suffering. The bad guy should _**never**_ sound like that. Loki should never sound like he had been so deeply hurt, so betrayed – _Obie was ginning down at him, the Arc Reactor in his hands._

Loki knew nothing of betrayal.

"_**SHUT THE HELL UP**__! Other people are trying to sleep and your __**crying out for daddy **__is keeping me awake!_" He shouted, not really caring for the fact that Loki was susceptible to nightmares like everyone else. Loki shouldn't sound like that; he didn't have the right to.

The yelling ceased immediately, leaving the room deathly silent so quickly that Tony felt a shiver run down his spine at the eeriness of it all.

…_Uh-oh_…

The sound of footsteps moving swiftly down the hallway was enough to put him on the alert. Loki had promised him punishment and the God just might be in a cranky enough mood to start tormenting him now.

Sure enough, Tony spotted Loki's lithe form slip into the room, his enhanced vision picking up every crinkle in the God's dark green pajamas pants. Loki's bare torso was covered with sweat, letting him know that the nightmare had been a really bad one, which didn't bode well for him at all.

The look on Loki's face was murderous.

'_Mental note to self, never wake Rock of Ages from a nightmare by insulting him._' Without saying a word, Loki grabbed his cage, shaking it and tossing Tony's small form about as he moved toward one of the windows in the kitchen. The Asgardian opened the window, revealing an empty flowerbed attached to the brick building. The flowerbed fixing was only a few inches deep, its' width only slightly larger than the cage.

The rain from earlier hadn't let up at all and the wind seemed to be blowing even fiercer than before. Loki grabbed his cage and set it in the small flowerbed that already had gathered two inches of water inside of it, soaking his dried fur within seconds.

"Perhaps you will find better sleep out here, Stark." Loki said before he slammed the window shut and left a stunned Tony out in the rain.

~One Insult Too Many~

The plot of Pepper and Tony being broken up at the moment is mainly there so that I can have different scenarios at later points in the story. They could get back together or they could not. They could struggle a lot, trying to be together, but be stuck in an on-again off-again relationship. I could set Pepper up to fall for Bruce or even kill her off in the future. I honestly have no set plans for Pepper's and Tony's relationship so give me some suggestions on what you'd like to see and we'll go from there.

To me, when I watched the movie, I felt that Tony was like the glue that kept the team together. He took some of the heat off of Banner whenever someone became too focused on the guy's emotional state and cracked a joke to break any tension whenever it started brewing.

I'm not sure how well I did with Loki being his evil, yet suave self. I like the feelings he had and leaving a kitten Tony out in the rain is simply heartless, but I'm not sure if I accurately nailed Loki's character down in this chapter.

Please review and comment on how chapter 2 went. Thank you!

~Hexalys~


	3. Lost Identity

I want to thank everyone who took the time to review!

**juten love **asked if this fic was going to be a FrostIron and honestly, I don't think it will be. I've never written a slash story before and I have no doubt that I'd be horrible at it if I tried. I figure it's best to play to my strengths and there are already plenty of FrostIron stories out there in the fandom. Pepper and Tony not being together at the moment wasn't a plot so that Tony could hook up with Loki, but mainly there so I can focus on more of Tony struggles.

I like Pepper fine, it's just I like writing about playboy Tony more. Plus, it adds a different scenario to the story. In most fics I've read, Tony and Pepper are either together or they aren't, in this it can go either way. Make no mistake though; Pepper and Tony still care about each other very much.

Now my pretties, read and enjoy!

~One Insult Too Many~

Chapter 3: Lost Identity

Loki awoke to the sounds of his own frantic breathlessness; the nightmares had not deserted him after Stark had awoken him last night. Nightmares were an unusual thing for Loki; he'd long since trained his mind and magic to filter out such weaknesses. With most of his magic bound however, it seemed he was susceptible to them once more.

How long had it been since his last nightmare? Surely more than a few centuries of that Loki knew for certain.

His last nightmare, which he'd long since forgotten, had truly terrified him. Unfortunately, Thor had heard his screaming that night and had questioned him about it loud enough for the entire banquet hall to hear the next morning. It didn't take much for others more intelligent than Thor to put the pieces together.

Fandral and Volstagg had found his situation to be quite humorous, a running gag to amuse themselves with in order to pass the time. Hogun had been silent as ever, saying only once that a true warrior of Asgard would never let himself be weakened by such an illusion. Sif had been particularly malicious in her mockery of him and his nightmares.

When he'd gone to Thor for understanding the oaf had just smiled and laughed into his mead, saying that he was simply far too sensitive for his own good.

Embarrassed and angry, Loki had sought his revenge by making the others suffer a season full of nightmarish sleep. He had not been caught or punished, as the others had been too ashamed to admit that they were being troubled in such away. The warriors three, Sif and Thor had learned never to mock his nightmares again. Still, it was a weakness he had refused to be burdened with any longer after that.

He had cast a somewhat powerful enchantment that blocked the nightmares; the only drawback was that it also stopped him from having pleasant dreams as well. It was a sacrifice that he hadn't foreseen, but one he'd easily dealt with.

What purpose did such frivolous illusions hold for him anyways?

Loki brushed a shaking hand through his sweat dampened hair, growling at the feebleness Odin had forced upon him. Making him relive the moments in his life where his world had come crashing down, when he'd learned of his true origins and of Odin's purpose for him.

"_**I thought we could unite our kingdoms one day. Bring about an alliance; bring about a permanent peace through you.**_"

A pawn in a king's game, a tool to be used, a means to an end.

"_**But those plans no longer matter…**_"

He was never meant to claim the throne, not the one of Asgard anyways. What had Odin's plan been? To raise him as a God and then tell him of his true nature, a monster detested by Asgard and its people? Had Odin expected him to take the throne of Jotunheim, even when King Laufey had already sentenced his runt of an heir to death? Loki shook his head, ridding himself of unwanted thoughts.

What's past is past and Odin would yet suffer for his past transgressions.

Loki pulled himself out of his ruffled bed, taking a moment to let his perspired skin bask in the rooms' cool temperatures. His mind wandered to last night, to the mortal turned animal by Odin's own hand. It had been very foolish of Stark to insult the All-Father, he was lucky to have escaped with only this new form as his punishment. Of course the mortal had poorly learned from the lesson Odin had tried to impose on him, namely holding ones' tongue in front of your betters.

Admittedly, it was a harsh lesson, one that had taken Loki centuries to learn.

Yet the only reason for why Odin had spared Stark was because he'd saved Thor's life, as well as his own, though Loki rather believed that the latter had been an act of necessity, not of righteousness. Stark only did what he had to in order to protect Midgard; any other results were just unintentional outcomes.

Still, Stark's act of sacrifice was an action that Odin could not dismiss, a debt that could not be ignored. It made Loki curious of what else he might be ignorant to. Perhaps he should find out more as to what happened at the end of the battle for Midgard.

With that decision made, he left his room and made his way towards the kitchen window. He spotted the small trembling form of his captive and mused over how pathetic of a creature Iron Man had become.

From his brief encounter with the mortal, he knew Stark was not submissive in the slightest. He was a proud Midgardian who had an ego that could rival Thor's in some ways and outmatch him in many others. Stark was a mortal who refused to look like the weaker man, going so far as to risking his life merely to have the last word. Foolish, extremely so, but it was a quality that Loki could appreciate. Stark let no one silence him; he was not one to "_know his place_" and such a simple characteristic angered Loki greatly.

No mortal had such a right to be so… unyielding. Yet Stark had proven in the past that he was not one to be categorized as a simple mortal.

In his time on Midgard Loki had collected as much information on the Avengers that he could. While Agent Barton had been under his control, he'd only cared to learn about his enemies' strength and weaknesses, he'd had no need to know about their pasts or about their quirks in personalities. Stark was the easiest to get information about as he was the most public out of the Avengers.

He was an arrogant man, one who loved to flaunt his achievements, to hear his praises from others.

Stark had proven to be a genius from a very early age. His father, Howard Stark, had built an empire in creating weapons of mass destruction, as well as advancing many other areas of technology. Stark's parents had died in a car accident while he'd still been rather young, according to Midgardian standards, and had later taken over his father's empire. He continued his father's work in creating weapons and gained a reputation as the world's most brilliant man when it came to engineering.

Then there was Stark's three months in captivity.

There was little known about what happened to Stark while being held hostage in Afghanistan, only that he'd escaped by making the Iron Man suit. Not too long after, Iron Man made his first appearance as he fought against a much larger opponent named War Monger, whom was killed in battle. Coincidentally, the CEO of Stark Industries, Obadiah Stane, had died in a plane crash that same night. Loki knew there was more to it than that; the two colliding incidents were obviously linked.

The next day, Stark announced to the world that he was Iron Man.

Six months later the government tried to gain ownership over Stark's creation, claiming it to be too powerful of a weapon for one man to handle. Not even a few days later, a mortal named Ivan Vanko, created his own version of the Iron Man technology, utilizing energized whips instead of armor and long ranged weapons. Vanko was defeated by Iron Man and then sent to prison where he was freed in secrecy by another mortal named Justin Hammer, the owner of a weapons company that had failed to mimic Stark's suit.

At the Stark Expo of last year, Vanko attacked Stark once again. The mortal used a regiment of automatons that were similar to Stark's suit and unleashed them upon the populated gathering. One of Stark's previous creations, War Machine, had been manned by another mortal, a soldier named Colonel James Rhodes and a longtime friend of Stark's. In the end, Iron Man defeated Vanko once again, deciding to finish off the mortal, permanently.

While to some that information may seem like a quite a lot, to Loki, he knew he was woefully ignorant when it came to Anthony Stark, the Man of Iron. He knew there was so much more to the mortal than what was reported to the public and his crippled pride demanded he learn all there was to know.

He would find out Stark's deepest secrets, of his greatest fears and nightmares. He would relish every cry for mercy that bled from the mortal's mouth as he used those secrets, those weakness, to tear Stark apart piece by piece.

~One Insult Too Many~

The rain had been cold and the wind had been harsh and unforgiving as it battered against Tony's small body. There had been no shelter from the storm; there had been some dirt though that had escape his notice, until he'd felt the clumps of mud congeal into his fur. It was morning now and thankfully the storm had finally blown over.

The flowerbed he was trapped in was still filled with dirty water, just reaching his Arc Reactor, which was slightly covered in mud. The slight sting in his side reminded him that the filthiness of his current environment did nothing to help sterilize his Ratzilla wounds.

Though the sun was steadily rising over New York, Tony couldn't see it due to where the flowerbed was located. The only thing he could see was the dark bricks of the neighboring building in front of him and the dark clouds overhead.

Who thought it would be a bright idea to have a flowerbed hanging over an alleyway anyways? It's not like anybody could see it, really the whole thing was just pointless. Hell, Loki had probably magic'd it there for the sole purpose of leaving him out in the rain.

Tony shivered.

He was cold… no, scratch that shit, he fucking freezing.

The last time he'd been this cold was when he'd gone through that damn portal, carrying that double-damned nuke. He'd gone through the portal, very much aware of the statistics that said he wasn't going to survive long enough to hightail it back to Earth. For a second, even with the Chitauri fleets filling his vision, outer space had looked so eerily beautiful. It had really been a once in a lifetime kind of sight.

Then the cold had set in.

The sudden drastic change in pressure between Earth's atmosphere and space immediately took effect; crushing his suit with him still inside it, killing the power instantly. And the air, well there hadn't been any, there just wasn't anything to breathe in.

Tony had experienced what it was like to asphyxiate before. Thanks to the Ten Rings and then when Obie – _Stane, dammit _– had removed his Arc Reactor – _may that backstabbing bastard burn in hell _– Tony thought he knew what it felt like to have his lungs empty, to not be able to draw in another breath, but space had shown him that he had no idea what it was like to truly suffocate.

Even during those times of asphyxiation, he'd been able to get in a little air; even if it wasn't enough, there had still been something to breathe in. But there had been _nothing _in space, even gagging had been impossible. He just stopped; there was nothing slow or painful about it. It had taken him by surprise so fast that he hadn't even realized when his lungs had stopped working.

And as horrible as suffocating had been, it had nothing on the cold.

It had felt as if ice was replacing the blood in his veins, turning it into slush and destroying him from the inside out. It was as if someone had just injected him with gallons of palladium, that poisonous silver chemical burning him all the way to his core. If there had been any oxygen, Tony was sure that the cold alone would have made him stop breathing.

It was only when he felt his own breaths start to thin that he'd realized his mistake. Anxiety attacks Jarvis called them, which was complete bullshit. '_Think about something else, think about Pepper, about equations – Oh god, I can't breathe!_' He tried to do what Jarvis had instructed in the past, to take deep breaths, but his lungs burned and he felt like there wasn't enough air. Which was stupid because he was outside, how much more air did he need?

His heart finally calmed down after what felt like hours, breaths heavy but deep. The he felt shame take over. He was Iron Man, how could he lose his shit like that just because of a bad experience with his first trip into outer space?

Tony shuddered from both his memories and from the cold that was currently biting into his fragile body. He'd reached a sort of numbness in the middle of the night, unaffected by the dropping temperature, but the water's coolness was beginning to feel fresh against his body and renewed the frigidness he'd been oblivious to for the last few hours.

As the hours had passed, Tony had silently admitted to himself that he'd been very stupid to wake Loki the way that he had, but he'd just felt so bitter and justified at the time. What right did Loki have to sound hurt; like _he'd_ been the innocent victim and that someone else had been the bad guy? Now though, he had the vaguest impression that he'd been in the wrong last night… until Loki had stuck him outside in the rain that is.

Fucking asshole was just as vindictive as Odin.

He was suddenly torn out of his inner curse filled thoughts by the sound of the window being opened from behind him. Loki – _the pale arrogant jackass _– looked down at him with the haughtiest look he had ever seen, which really was saying something considering he was Tony Stark. It made him want to fire a repulsor blast right into the God's opening mouth.

'_Silver-tongue, meet the Uni-beam._' The grisly image his mind created from that scenario brought a smile to his face. Tony decided to try it out the instant he became human and had his suit with him.

"Have we learned our lesson, Stark?" Loki asked speaking to Tony as if he _really was_ a small kitten. He held back an angry growl, knowing that it wouldn't earn him any brownie points at the moment. Still, that didn't mean he was going to be sucking up to Loki anytime soon… or ever really.

"_Yeah, never to wake your happy ass up again._" He bit out bitterly. He saw Loki raise an eyebrow and noticed the God moving to shut the window again. "_…Because it was stupid, but hey, I'm only human. Nobody walks on water._" He continued through gritted teeth. He could try to play nice at the moment, especially since he was pretty sure he could hear thunder brewing in the distance.

Loki raised the other brow, his smirk returning with a vengeance and Tony almost made a wise-ass comment about how Loki lost to a group of _lowly humans_, but decided against it. He really needed to get warm, to get clean. He was pretty sure another day out in the rain would mean the end for his new furry body.

"But Stark, you are far from human at the moment." Loki taunted and then started to chuckle at Tony's sad attempt at a threatening growl. "Now Stark, do you wish to come inside or is the next downpour needed to cool your head a little more?"

Tony glared up at Loki; seriously considering his options for a few moments before he mentally sighed and lowered his head in submission. It was not the first time he'd been forced to push aside his ego because of the threat of punishment hanging over his head. '_Fucking terrorists and their fucking interrogation skills_.'

Loki, thankfully, took the gesture for what it was, because there was no way Tony was going to actually ask to come inside. He could swallow his pride when needed, but asking him to chew it up and then spit on it was something he simply could not do.

He would sooner die before being forced to sink that low.

Loki grabbed the top of his cage, holding it in the air for a moment to let the clinging water drip down into the alleyway below. It was a very disconcerting view for Tony, who was a lot further off the ground then he'd originally thought. If Loki wanted to, he could kill him just by letting the cage go. As if reading his thoughts, Loki jerked the cage down suddenly and Tony instinctively felt his claws wrap around the thin metal wire of his cage as a startled shout ripped through his throat.

Loki laughed again; the God's sick enjoyment was so palpable that he felt as if Loki's taunting chuckles were searing at his insides. '_Oh hello there humiliation, it's been a while, yep I haven't seen you since the last time I was held prisoner_.' Fortunately, Loki didn't leave him dangling there for long. He was soon brought into the dry apartment and he relished the wind-free air and warmer temperature.

"Tsk, Tsk, Anthony, you're completely covered in filth." Loki said patronizingly, adding more fuel to the fire that was Tony's hatred for the God. He hated being patronized, _a lot_, but he hated being called Anthony even more.

His friends called him Tony and the public called him Tony Stark. His business associates and the government called him Mr. Stark. His enemies and the media called him Iron Man. Fury, Rogers, Agent Romanoff, and a few others, simply called him Stark. Then there was Thor, who called him the Man of Iron, which he really should have corrected at some point but he found it funny how Thor messed up the name slightly.

Only Howard had ever called him Anthony. It was his old man's way of showing how distant they were. Whenever people where around, he was called Tony, but when they were home and out of the spotlight, he was Anthony once more.

What kind of dad does that to his kid?

So Tony didn't bother to point out that Loki could address him as anything else, asshole would have been much more preferable at this point, knowing it wouldn't do him any good. Hell, the God would probably call him that just to piss him off. Besides, Loki calling him that undesirable name just gave him more of an incentive to hate the God of Mischief.

He was brought out his thoughts as Loki's hand suddenly grabbed the fur on the back of his neck and lifted him out of the cage. Okay, this was starting to get really old, really fast. What was this, the third time Loki held him by his neck? Tony didn't struggle, not because he'd decided to play nice, but because he was simply too damn exhausted to put up a fight.

Obviously, besides his little nap before getting caught by Loki and the one he'd had on the way here, he hadn't gotten much sleep last night.

He was taken down the hallway to be met with two closed doors. Loki took him through the closer one, which actually turned out to be a bathroom. The color theme of the kitchen countertops continued into the room, the tiled floor was the same granite grey as was the sink's countertop. The countertop was attached to a large dark wooden cabinet, leading Tony to guess that it held the towels and other toiletries.

There was no tub, only a large, tiled walk-in shower that had a fogged glassed door instead of a shower curtain. The walls were cream, matching the porcelain toilet and sink in color, with two dark green bathroom mats on the floor, one in front of the shower and the other in front of the sink. On the wall, directly over the sink, hung a large oval shaped mirror that was boarded with a very detailed wooden molding.

~One Insult Too Many~

Loki dropped Stark, none too gently, into the rather large sink before he ducked down to grab a washcloth and a bottle of shampoo from the cabinet. He came back up to find Stark trying to climb out of the oval shaped sink without much success.

The mild hisses and huffs were enough to let him know that Stark knew what was about to happen and was none too happy about it. Loki took this chance to get a better look at the human turned feline, as he hadn't paid much attention to detail last night.

Most of Stark's fur was a dark brown, matching the former human's hair color. The tips of his paws, save for his front right one, were white as were the ridges of his ears. His muzzle was also white, looking disturbing like thee mortal's ridiculous facial hair, and leading into a light pink nose. The area surrounding the glowing machine in his chest was white as well.

The machine, an Arc Reactor Loki believed it was called, that must have been what stopped him from controlling Stark's mind some months ago. The glow from it was nothing like anything he'd ever seen any other Midgardian mechanism possess. It almost reminded him of… but no, that was impossible. It was best for him to disperse those thoughts; the Tesseract was well out of his reach at the moment anyways.

In size, Stark was a very small creature compared to others of his kind that Loki had seen. Odin had not only changed Stark into an animal, he'd turned the mortal into a youngling at that, barely old enough to have learned the skill to run without tripping. Truly the All-Father had meant to insult Stark's pride as much as possible.

He turned on the water, surprised that the mortal had kept silent for so long and adjusted the temperature to lukewarm. Loki placed Stark under the streaming faucet, washing off most of the mud from the fur before blocking the drain. As the warm water began to fill the sink, Loki started to notice Stark's drooping eyelids and the way that his head would tilt slightly before jerking back up.

He smiled; it seemed Stark hadn't found better sleep outside after all.

Loki poured a small dab of soap into his hands and then lathered them into Stark's fur, getting rid of the more stubborn pieces of mud. He worked in silence for several minutes, his mind becoming calm and wondrously blank as he busied himself with the distracting task. Then he heard it, the noise was quiet at first, but as time passed, it soon overpowered the sound of the running water.

Purring.

He almost strangled the small creature in his hands right there. '_How dare Stark get any sort of enjoyment out of this!_' Just as quickly as the rage had come, it left, simmering lowly in the back of his mind as an unexpected idea suddenly came forth. He chuckled slightly before he spoke.

"Hmm, I had no idea how affectionate you could be, Anthony." The words slipped off his silver-tongue with ease, sounding innocent enough to most, though there was an underlining tone to his words that was quite the opposite. He felt Stark stiffen under his hands as the purring ceased immediately and he almost laughed again at the horrified look the mortal had somehow managed to convey.

His hands brushed over a particularly dirty patch of fur and he was pleasantly surprised at the loud cry of pain the action produced. He looked closer and found that Stark had three, somewhat deep, cuts in his side that had started to bleed. He washed over the wound again, causing Stark to start struggling wildly in his grasp.

"_**Shit, **__that hurts! Let me go you crazy son of a bitch!_" Tony shouted as he tried to get out of Loki's tight grip. The purring had been bad enough, because seriously, he was a person and _people didn't_ _fucking purr__!_ Now though, the soap burned as it got into his wound, stinging just as badly as any alcohol swab could.

And he was so fucking tired of being nothing more than a passing amusement for Loki.

"Now really Anthony, must you make such a mess? You're splashing water everywhere. Do I have to put you outside again after this?" Loki said as he lifted Stark out of the water altogether, holding him up at eye level and smiling at the sputtering mortal.

"_Screw you Loki, I'm not your fucking pet! I'm one of the Avengers who beat your sorry ass. I'm Iron Man and I'm my own damn person!_" Tony growled as his ears pulled back slightly.

For a second he saw Loki's eyes narrow in anger, he saw the God's mouth twist into a silent snarl. He felt the God's grip tighten dangerously, as his shoulders tensed and pulled back slightly, making him look even more intimidating. For a second, Tony thought for sure that he was about to get a very painful beating. But then all the hostility vanished and a look of bemusement rearranged onto Loki's face as his body relaxed once more.

In Tony's opinion, this collected Loki was a whole lot worse than a pissed off one.

"I see no person before me." Loki said simply as he turned Tony around to stare at his reflection. A small wet kitten looked back at him; his ears that had flattened in anger now drooped with shock and understanding. Oh God, he really was a cat. Somehow, the reality of the situation hadn't really sunk in until now.

He was small, weak and definitely not human. If it weren't for the Arc Reactor glowing in his chest, Tony was sure he'd vehemently deny the image before him. He would never have admitted that the damp creature before his eyes was now who he was. He would have never believed that the frozen kitten trapped in Loki's clutches was Tony Stark.

How could this possibly be him?

"You see Anthony, you are not a person, you are not Iron Man, and you are not even Tony Stark anymore." Loki said as he placed the stunned mortal on the countertop, inwardly grinning at the mental anguish his captive was surly experiencing. He used the washcloth as a towel, drying Stark's fur somewhat, and was greatly pleased that he heard no purring this time.

He put the used cloth on the counter, studying Stark as the mortal continued to stare at his new reflection, seemingly unable to come to terms with his current state. Another cruel idea came to Loki and his smile was all teeth and feral in every way.

With a murmur of magic filled words, a dark green collar appeared out of the air, falling into his awaiting hands. On it was the name '_Anthony_' stitched in gold threads, and he held it out for the mortal to see through the mirrors reflection. There was no reaction, well no physical one anyways, besides the widening of the mortal's eyes as the collar snapped into place around his small neck.

"A pet is exactly what you are, Anthony."

~One Insult Too Many~

Whew, okay that took longer than I expected. The chapter itself isn't that long (just a little over 4,900 words), making it my shortest chapter so far. It just took me forever to write it out because my mind was drawing complete blanks for what I wanted Loki to say. In the end though, I'm really happy with how this chapter ended.

As I have many ideas and events that I'm going to employ in the future, I'm curious to know if there's a situation any of you want to see specifically. I'll try to see if I can add it in at a later point, but please keep in mind that this story has no slash.

Anyways, please leave a review to let me know what you thought about this chapter! Thank you!

~Hexalys~


	4. Cat Scratch Fever

I want to thank everyone who took the time to review!

Alright, I really didn't want for this chapter to take so long to post, especially since this has so many fans, but I had to turn my attention to my other stories. And as much as I love writing, I'm kind of a lazy person. I don't mean to be, it's just a quirk in my personality that I've never been able to change.

To **Rose1991**, this story will not become slash in any way, I promise. While I hold nothing against such pairings as FrostIron, there really is a lot of slash here in the Avengers category. I consider my non-slash story to be a breath of fresh air to some of my many readers.

Anyways, here's the next chapter, read and enjoy… and review… please review.

~One Insult Too Many~

Chapter 4: Cat Scratch Fever

Tony was back in his cage, his body stiff and aching as his mind finally started to reboot. He would never admit it, _to anyone ever_, but Loki had really gotten to him. The God had managed to get under his skin, get into his head, and had then ruthlessly shoved his lost humanity down his fucking throat.

And what did he do in response? He just sat there and took it, not even able to think up of some half-ass retort. Because really, what could he say besides restating who he was? He _had been_ Tony Stark, he _used to be_ Iron Man, but right now he _was _Anthony, a helpless cat caught in Loki's grasp.

Or least that was what he had thought for the first few stunned minutes.

Now though, he was back in his cage, his brain was starting to work again, and the first thought that entered his mind was, '_When I'm human again, I'm going to rip off this fucking collar and shove it up your ass, Loki!_' A few of his thoughts were directed towards figuring out how he was going to get back to normal, but most were busy with illustrating the mental images of Iron Man beating the ever living shit out of his captor.

His imaginings were unfortunately interrupted by a door opening from down the hall. After shoving Tony into his cage, Loki had returned to the bathroom to take his own shower. From his spot on the kitchen counter he caught only a short glimpse of Loki's retreating form.

'_Okay, that's way more of Loki then I ever needed to see. Repress it Tony, repress it._' He thought frantically as the image of only a green towel wrapped lowly around the God's hips continued to burn into his minds' inner eye. '_Oh god, it's not going away!_' He shuddered and shook his head vigorously, physically trying to dislodge the horrifying memory from his head.

Loki reappeared in a matter of minutes, dressed in a suit similar to what he'd worn yesterday, only there was a dark green tint to the almost black suit. He didn't so much as glance at Tony as he moved deeper into the kitchen and started the up-to-date coffee brewer. From there, Loki moved to the fridge to pull out a carton of milk and then some sugar out of a nearby cupboard. As the coffee brewed, Loki left the kitchen and then the apartment altogether, the door left open slightly in his wake.

Tony stared at the door in almost hypnotic manner, because right in front of him, was his damn ticket to freedom.

Another minute passed as he stared at his escape route, and without realizing it, he had padded up to the door of his cage, his paws desperately pushing and pulling against the metal latch. Another minute later Loki returned to stand in the open doorway, those green eyes focusing on him in less than a second. A smirk slipped over his face as he closed the door slowly behind him with one hand, the other holding a newspaper.

"Missed me, Anthony?" Loki asked, his voice cutting across the room. Tony lowered his front paws and took a few hasty steps back towards his corner of the cage. He imagined he'd looked very pitiful a few moments ago, and damn it, didn't that just sting his already broken pride. The image of a pet pawing at the door, desperately waiting for its' owner to return, seared into the back of his mind.

It made him hate himself.

"_No… oh shit, I was supposed to lie and say yes, wasn't I? You're never supposed to say the N-O word in a situation like this. It makes the captor angry and unstable… well, more unstable than before in your case._" He said while looking at Loki up and down, as if he were gauging at what level of crazy the God was currently on. Loki wasn't smirking anymore, which Tony was both pleased and unpleased to see. Getting one up on Reindeer Games was great; he just didn't want to end up with four broken legs because of it.

'_Find the line Tony_.' He thought to himself. '_Then you can tiptoe around it all you like, until then __**keep your mouth shut**__._'

Good advice and it had been given to him by Yinsen after he'd returned from one of his "lessons" for mouthing off in Afghanistan. Tony had remarked that he'd never find that line if he didn't search for it and Yinsen had merely sighed tiredly before agreeing in the end. "_Then walk with an air of caution my friend, and keep your senses about you. That line is very hard to spot when it comes to some people._"

Tony was brought out of his thoughts as Loki made himself comfortable at the countertop his cage rested on. He shifted in his corner of the cage, shuffling away from the God, as Rock of Ages was way too close for his taste. Loki paid him no mind and instead focused on the newspaper in his left hand, while his right occasionally brought a steaming coffee mug up to his lips.

'_Mmm... I remember coffee; it always tasted best when it was Irish coffee._' He thought to himself as he inhaled the heavenly aroma. Nothing tasted better than coffee at four in the morning. He felt his stomach roll in protest though, whether from hunger or nausea, he wasn't exactly sure. His body felt a little off and not in the "Hey, I'm suddenly a cat!" kind of way, but in an "Ugh, I should never have eaten that day old sushi!" way.

"Now, Anthony." Loki said, once again forcing him out of his thoughts. "I must tend to some business today, meaning you will be on your own for some time. So please, try to restrain yourself from missing my presence too much." He growled in response and Loki merely chuckled before leaving the apartment. Tony nestled himself more comfortably in his corner and tried to get some sleep, he wasn't really feeling all that well to start an argument anyways.

~One Insult Too Many~

So Loki was fucking missing. Fury was not all that surprised to hear that he had escaped, not when Thor had boarded the Helicarrier with the rest of the Avengers. It was petty, but his bruised ego was soothed slightly by the news, knowing that he wasn't the only one who had trouble containing that slippery little bastard.

What he had not been expecting though, was the information that followed.

"You want to run that one by me again, Thor?" Fury asked as his eyebrows shot up to greet his forehead. It wasn't often that he heard something that shocked him to the point of "_What the fuck?_", but he seemed to be experiencing that rare moment now.

"As I said Director, my Father punished the Son of Stark by transformation. He is currently in the form of a Midgardian creature called a–"

"Are you trying to tell me, that Tony Stark, a man who is quite possibly the most powerful and influential person in the northern hemisphere, has been turned into _a fucking __**cat?**_" Thor merely nodded his head and Fury turned to the other Avengers in the room, very much hoping that Stark was going to pop out and scream April Fools.

Dr. Banner had supposedly stayed behind to take care of Miss Potts, but the rest of the Avengers, minus Stark, had come to base to explain the situation in person. Their faces were grim and serious, so they weren't trying to pull one over on him.

_Fuck._

Fury closed his tired eye and swore under his breath as he sunk into his chair. It was silent for a few minutes and an awkward tension began to fill the room, but he mentally blocked out his current company and he tried to think about how he was going to handle this little situation Stark had brought down on his head. '_I never should have sent that asshole in the first place._' He thought as he pinched the bridge of his nose to ease the migraine that was beginning to grow.

"I do not understand. I knew the Man of Iron was a powerful warrior in this realm, but is he truly as important as you say?" Thor asked almost timidly, breaking the tense silence and he heard the Captain scoff lightly from behind the God.

Fury looked up to spare Rogers a glare, which seemed to cow the soldier slightly, before turning his attention back to the God of Thunder. Thor, to put it simply, looked like a fucking wreck. What he was wrecked with though was anybody's guess; was it guilt, shame, worry? In a rare moment, he took pity on the God and lessened his glare slightly.

"Stark is the richest person in the world, that being said he has his fingers in almost everything you can think of. Health Care, the American government, Research facilities, S.H.I.E.L.D. itself has been singlehandedly funded by the man for the last two years. Hell, the arrogant bastard even has his own clothing line, and that's not even counting all the Iron Man merchandise that's been pouring out of his ass for the last year and a half."

"On this planet, money is power and people flock to power. Stark has connections with people from all over the world, the greatest men and woman of our age, and each one are on his guest list for every charity event he throws." He paused, remembering the last soirée Stark had thrown little over a month ago. What a fucking mess that had been. He and the President had somehow ended up in a five-star hotel in Beijing; the press had a goddamn field day with that one.

"That stunt with the missile during the Chitauri invasion only boosted his public image, not to mention his company's stocks. Everyone wants to shake Stark's hand, even if he's personally a pain in the ass to deal with. They admire his confidence, his intelligence, and his lack of restraints. He's considered the world's greatest hero at the moment."

"So yes Thor, to answer your question, Stark is a pretty fucking important person. One who is apparently nowhere to be found. Care to explain to how the hell you lost him?" Fury finished with an angry growl and glared at the God who actually shuffled his feet a little.

"There was an out of control metal carriage with Midgardians trapped inside; I meant only to leave the Man of Iron alone for but a moment. However, when I returned, he was nowhere to be found. I searched for him, but I could not…" Thor trailed off as his eyes moved to stare down at his hands, Mjolnir resting at this waist.

It might just be Thor's imagination, but last night, when he'd held Mjolnir moments before confronting the others; his weapon had felt slightly heavier to his hands. Perhaps he'd just been tired, but he was not wholly convinced with such reasoning. There were so many things that had gone wrong in recent months, Loki's attack on Midgard merely being the beginning. A voice in the back of his head, one that sounded suspiciously like his brother, wondered if he was slowly losing the right to wield Mjolnir as his own.

He felt so conflicted, his loyalty for his brother was still strong, but perhaps that was what was wrong. After all, had Loki not proven himself to be untruthful and vengeful? Should he not hate his brother for all the wicked deeds he's committed?

Thor could not though, there existed no part of him that hated Loki or resented him for what his brother had done. He loved Loki and always would. If such an act made him unworthy to hold Mjolnir, then he would willingly spend the rest of his life brandishing another weapon.

'_Perhaps it is not my loyalty to Loki that is at fault, but the loyalty I hold towards Father?_' Thor thought miserably as he hung his head in shame. A son was supposed to be loyal, but the recent year had him questioning his Father more than he'd ever done before in his life. '_Then again, perhaps I am simply not worthy to hold Mjolnir. I could not even save my brother from falling into darkness._'

"Alright, first we need to know what Stark looks like now before we can even start a search." Fury said bringing Thor out his thoughts.

"He is small, smaller than my own hand and his fur is mostly brown. There's white on his paws and ears, also the light in his chest is still with him in his current form." Thor explained and Fury nodded before ordering his agents to monitor camera feeds within a three block radius of Stark Tower to be on the lookout.

"Have Dr. Banner see if he can locate Stark by trying to track him through the Arc Reactor. I have no idea what sort of energy it might be distributing, so the good doctor will be flying blind. Also, have Miss Potts place up a reward for Stark; say he's a missing pet or something." Fury ordered and the Avengers nodded.

"Now, let's talk about our other missing person." Thor resisted the urge to gulp guiltily as the Director's dark eye stared into his. "We need to find Loki and fast. I doubt Stark's sudden disappearance and Loki's escape being brought to light at the same time is a simple case of ill-timing on our part."

"Wait, you think Loki's got Stark, sir? Surely, this is just coincidence." The Captain said but Fury kept his lone eye on Thor, who suddenly looked very pale, his gaze shifting to the floor.

"I stopped believing in coincidences a long time ago, Rogers." He growled as he continued to study Thor. The God slowly brought his eyes up to meet his and Fury gritted his teeth at the worried look Thor was sending him. "Loki can find Stark, can't he?" The Avengers shifted anxiously behind Thor, who nodded slowly in response.

"My brother, he can feel the magical imprints of others. I have no doubt that Loki would be able to sense my Father's mark on the Son of Stark. We must find him, quickly." Thor said gravely and Fury barely resisted the urge to slam his fists onto the arms of his chair in frustration.

~One Insult Too Many~

Tony was feeling horrible, not Palladium poisoning horrible, but it was still pretty bad. He recognized that he had a fever, as it was similar to what he'd woken up to after getting an infection from the surgery Yinsen had performed on him to insert the Arc Reactor.

'_Shit, the Ratzilla cuts, they must have gotten infected at some point during the night._' He thought slowly as a shiver wrecked through his overheated body. '_How the fuck is it even possible to feel this cold and hot at the same time?_'

The sudden opening of the front door made him look up quickly and he instantly regretted the action as his head throbbed in protest. Loki closed the door normally, but to Tony, the noise was amplified to the point of painful and he hissed weakly at the God for causing the deafening sound. Loki said something in response, but the words were too muffled for him to make out.

"_Yeah, yeah, I hate you too._" He mumbled halfheartedly as he buried his face into his paws, trying to block out the lights that were suddenly too bright. He could hear Loki moving about somewhere nearby and tried to ignore the God, until he felt Loki pull him out of his cage.

"Of course, I could always situate your–" Loki cut his threat short as he felt the heat exuding from Anthony's small body. He righted the mortal so that he could look into his eyes, only to find them milky and lacking their usual heated glare. "You are unwell." He said lowly as his eyes narrowed at the small feline.

"_Yeah, well, it happens on occasion to us lowly mortals._" Tony muttered tiredly before biting back a groan. He suddenly felt really dizzy and oddly enough, dangling from six feet off the ground wasn't really helping any.

Loki hissed in irritation at the mortal. True he wanted Anthony to suffer, he'd actually planned to psychologically torment his captive tonight, reducing the Man of Iron into a quivering pitiful mess, but this was different. For all he knew, a sick mortal was a dead one. He had no knowledge in such an area to determine whether Anthony's illness was fatal or not.

He eyed the cat in his hands and mentally assessed his reservoirs of magic. Healing spells were the most costly of magics, especially when used on another. He growled again, this time in frustration, as he realized healing Anthony would take up most of the magic that he'd collected. He would have to take care of this the mortal way then.

Turning back to the door, Loki grabbed his coat and ignored his umbrella, seeing as the rain outside had begun to lighten. Anthony mumbled something that was no doubt threatening, but he paid the mortal no mind as he made his way out of the building.

There was no sun out, for which Tony was grateful for, he didn't think his headache could handle anything that bright at the moment. There was a light drizzle coming down and it felt good on his small feverish body, until a slight wind renewed his shivering and then he wanted nothing more than to go back inside.

As the water continued to fall, Tony suddenly felt the urgent need to take a piss. He eyed the tree someone had thoughtfully plant on the sidewalk and weighed his options. One, he could embarrassingly ask Loki to let him do his business, or two, just piss on the God of Mischief instead. Deciding that his pride was going to take a hit no matter what he chose, Tony took the option that was the less likely to get him skinned alive.

"_Hey Reindeer Games, nature calls._" Tony said crudely, only slightly humiliated with his current situation. It wasn't like he'd never had to tell his guards in Afghanistan that he'd needed to take a piss.

"Oh, and you think I am just going to put you on the ground so that you can escape?" Loki asked as the taxi cab he hailed pulled up to the curb. Tony narrowed his eyes at the vehicle as he shifted in Loki's grip, wondering just where the hell they were going.

"_Look, you have two options here my dear warden. You either let me mark my territory on that tree, or I'll mark it on you when we're in the car._" Tony said simply as he looked up at Loki who sighed in annoyance.

Loki put his hand in his coat pocket, magically conjuring a green leash that matched Anthony's collar in color, before pulling it out and attaching it to said collar. He placed the small kitten on the ground, who ambled over to the tree at a sedate pace; no doubt his illness was taking effect. Loki turned to the mortal driver who, thankfully, did not seem nearly as rude or as impatient as his predecessors.

"Is there a healing center for my pet anywhere nearby?" Loki asked politely, putting out a friendly and warm appearance. He'd found rather quickly that his silver-tongue was much more useful in this realm, rather than his demanding nature. And if he had to play nice with the mortals to keep his cover, then he would do so without hesitation. He was not so foolish as to give up his position simply to soothe his pride.

"Sure man, dere be a vet's place jus'da few blocks over." The mortal said as he pushed his overly large sunglasses down the bridge of his nose to look at Loki. The God noticed that the driver styled his facial hair to look the way Anthony's had been a few months ago and that he also wore an Iron Man shirt.

He had of course seen the various displays in merchandise on Midgard that carried the Soldier's symbol on it or the Man of Iron's helm that the mortal children wore in public. It disgusted him, the way these people worshipped their "heroes". The only saving grace was that he'd seen little of the other Avengers represented through such menial tokens. He didn't think he could stomach seeing any broods running around with miniature Mjolnir's

Loki turned his attention towards Anthony, who was currently biting tiredly on his leash. It was amusing to say the least and the mortal driver apparently thought so as well.

"Cute cat man, is de little guy sick?" The driver asked and Loki shot him a side glance as he nodded slowly, taking in Anthony's suddenly rigid posture. He'd obviously heard the mortal's compliment, or more likely insult, in Anthony's opinion.

"Yes, he is rather adorable isn't he?" Loki mused out loud and he laughed slightly at Anthony's indignant sounding hiss. "Come Anthony, we must be leaving." Loki said firmly as he gave a firm tug on the leash, making Anthony stumble a little.

"_Alright Rock of Ages, I'm coming, Jesus. Try to remember that I have four legs now instead two. Fucking leash._" Tony grumbled as Loki gave another hard tug. He reluctantly let Loki pick him up as they got into the cab and tried to sit in the seat, only to have Loki firmly place him on his lap. He went to move again, but Loki's grip tightened dangerously and he understood the silent message loud and clear.

_Sit_, _stay, or else I'll break you like a fucking Kit-Kat bar_.

Once Anthony remained still, the mortal driver pulled out onto the street and Loki turned his attention to the shivering creature sitting on his lap. It was merely by luck so far that the driver had yet to see the Arc Reactor in Anthony's chest; it had been foolish to leave the apartment without first hiding the machine from mortal sight. Loki closed his eyes and focused his magic, channeling a cloaking spell over the mechanism so that no Midgardian would be able to see it.

He felt Anthony stiffen in his spot, but the mortal gave no other sign of recognizing that a spell had been placed on him.

By the time he was finished, they arrived at the animal healing center. He paid the driver, who gave Anthony a rather vigorous pat on the head before returning to the streets of New York once more. He mostly ignored Anthony's bitter insults directed at the driver and entered the small building. He and Anthony were greeted to a moderately sized waiting room occupied by a handful of mortals and their pets.

"_Oh hey, look at that, dogs, lots of big dogs._" Anthony said and Loki spotted the group of animals he was referring to. A young girl and her elder sat together, their hands each holding the leashes that belonged to three rather large creatures. The beasts did not look unfriendly to him, but their attention was focused solely on Anthony, making the small mortal shift deeper into the God's arms. Loki smiled to himself and sat down next to the two females, completely ignoring the open chairs on the other side of the room.

"Oh Mom, look, isn't she just the cutest kitty you've ever seen." The young girl crooned as soon as she spotted Anthony. The mother merely nodded her head in response before turning her attention back to the cellphone in her hand. Loki simply smiled politely, purposefully not bothering to correct her.

'_She! What the hell?_' Tony griped inwardly. He was just getting over the fact that he was no longer human; he really didn't need tween girls making digs about his masculinity at this point. The three dogs, Doberman he was pretty sure they were called, moved forward with deep growls. Instinct took over, or at least that was the excuse he decided to use should anyone ever ask him what happened next.

He let out a high pitched meow that was basically equivalent to a shout and launched himself into Loki's arms, burying his small head into the crook of the God's neck. His body shook and not from the chills of his fever or from the laughter that was coursing through Loki's body, but from fear of the fucking dogs who were _**trying to eat him!**_

The mother quickly apologized and pulled the dogs away from him with a "bad babies", – _And seriously lady, how the fuck are those things considered babies? _– and Loki assured the woman that no harm was done as he patted Tony's head, saying that he was simply a rather cowardly creature. '_Cowardly my ass, it's called self-preservation you dickhead!_' He thought angrily as he moved back down to sit on Loki's lap, – _Hello shame, yes it is lovely day, isn't it? _– and eyed the dogs nervously.

Eventually the ladies and dogs left when a veterinarian, he'd figured out where they were when he'd read the sign on the building, came out and gave the mom some pills that her mutts apparently needed. "_If I were her I'd just put the little bastards to sleep._" He growled and the dogs growled back at him. Loki merely rose an eyebrow in response, before addressing the vet who'd come up to greet them.

"Yeah, I don't like that type of dog much either little guy." The veterinarian said to Tony as he reached out to shake Loki's hand. "Hello, my name's Dr. Keller, I don't believe you've ever been here before, correct?" Keller asked as he pulled out the clipboard from underneath his other arm.

"Yes, this is my first time even talking to a veterinarian. You see, I found this little one roaming the streets last night and, well, I just couldn't leave him out there, not in that horrible storm." Loki said as Tony scoffed, which sounded more like a sneeze. '_You left me out in the rain on purpose, jackass!_' As if Loki heard his thoughts, he gave Tony a tight squeeze that left him sputtering for air.

"Ah, so we don't have a medical history for the little guy. That's alright, we'll just have to start one now; he's most likely a stray anyways. Let's start with his name, shall we?" Dr. Keller said as he brought a pen up to the clipboard. The forms took about twenty minutes to fill out before Dr. Keller brought them into the examination room.

Keller quickly found the scratches Ratzilla had left behind and prescribed the recommended antibiotics to fight off the infection. The bastard tried to take his temperature early on, just to see what sort of danger level the fever was at, but Tony had absolutely refused to have anything shoved up his ass.

Loki's laughter was still ringing in his ears.

"All he needs now are his shots and little Anthony here should be good for the next couple of months." Keller said as he brought out a needle, tapping on the shaft lightly to release any air bubbles.

"_Ah, yeah, fuck no!_" He shouted as he moved to the end of the table, preparing to jump, but was caught before he could even attempt to escape. The examination hadn't been too bad until now, rectal thermometer aside. Keller had been gentle when he'd bandaged up his wounds, while explaining to Loki all the things an owner would need for their new pet. Tony put up with it all, his body too tired to let him make a fuss. Needles though, those little devils warranted a reaction.

Tony Stark _did not_ do needles.

"Aw, come on Anthony, don't be a scaredy-cat. The only thing you'll feel is a little pinch and then it's all over. Everybody gets shots." Keller said softly, though it had no effect on Tony who was hissing death threats at the man that would have mortified Rogers. Keller looked up at Loki for help, who was taking in Tony's reaction with an interested gleam in his dark green eyes.

"Be still, Anthony." Loki said simply as he wrapped his hands threateningly around the mortal's small frame. He felt Anthony instantly stiffen in his hold and Keller quickly inserted the needle in-between Anthony's shoulder blades. Once the needle pulled away, Anthony all but collapsed into his hands, his shivering renewed once more and oddly silent for once. Loki thought about dropping the mortal back onto the table, but as Keller was watching him, he reluctantly brought Anthony close to his chest.

"Well Mr. Smith, that should be everything. As I said before, just make sure he takes his medicine with every evening meal and he should be better within the week." Tony meanwhile, rolled his eyes at Loki's attempt at an alias, Lyle Smith, as in Lie-smith. '_Oh, how very creative of you Reindeer Games._' "Also, make sure to pick up the supplies little Anthony needs soon, you don't want him to make a mess of your house." Keller said good-naturedly and Loki chuckled as he heard Tony growl in response.

"I shan't, now, say thank you Anthony." Loki said as he smirked down at Tony who did mutter a thanks to the doctor. After all, the guy did just give him drugs so that he wouldn't feel like shit anymore. It's not like Keller knew that he was actually a person instead of a cat anyways. Besides, he didn't feel petty enough to hold a grudge against a guy he'd likely never see again.

"It's surprising how temperamental the little guy is." Keller said as his hand brushed over some of the shallow scratches Tony had given him when he'd tried to take his temperature. "It's nice to see that he has a soft side though." The doctor continued as he gestured to the cat in Loki's hold. "He's most likely imprinted on you, seeing as he's so young."

"_The hell I did, stupid asshole has no idea what he's talking about._" Anthony growled as he struggled in Loki's grip, who chuckled at the healers' absurd statement.

"Indeed." He said towards the healer, though it was truly meant for Anthony who had at least stopped struggling after realizing that he wasn't letting go. "Come Anthony, we take our leave." He said before nodding farewell to the healer and returning to the streets. A new taxi arrived, which he took to the nearest pet supply store, making sure to only get the essentials and nothing more.

They returned to the apartment and he quickly set up Anthony's litter box, his mouth taking on the form of a disgusted sneer before spelling the box to vanish any waste on its own. He would not stoop so low as to actually cleaning up after Anthony. Loki turned to the mortal, whom he'd placed back in the cage, and examined the state of his little captive.

Anthony's eyes were closed and his chest rose and fell rapidly, his heavy panting audible in the quiet room. He approached the cage and Anthony's right ear flicked back before his eyes slowly opened, but there was no other response. He retrieved the mortal's medicine and held it out for Anthony, who took it without protest, before burying his head under his paws.

With an irritated grunt, Loki left Anthony in his cage and entered his private chamber, leaving his door open slightly, before settling into a meditative stance on his bed. It was late in the afternoon and with his evening now free, he focused his mind and magic inwardly to once again work at the releasing his magic from Odin's binds.

He would deal with Anthony later.

~One Insult Too Many~

Okay, that chapter's done, which was honestly such a pain in the ass to make. Loki is so fucking hard to write; I have to keep in mind that he talks all smart-like so it's hard to think of things for him to say that actually sound like they'd come from him.

Tony is easy. Loki, yeah, not so much.

We got a little bit of Fury's and Thor's perspective in there, which is good cause you guys were probably wondering what the hell S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers were doing, so there ya go. They're not doing much at this point. Remember, we're only on day two of Tony being a cat and missing.

Honestly, this is probably my least favorite chapter so far, but it had to be done. It's the next chapter that I'm really looking forward to. We get a flashback from Bruce about Tony and some serious emotions when Tony's fever gets worse, like having hallucinations worse, making him think Loki is actually someone else. It's pretty great.

Thanks for reading and please review!

~Hexalys~


	5. Delirious and Delusions

I want to thank everyone for taking the time to review!

I told you this chapter was going to come out soon, didn't I? You guys were probably thinking you'd have to wait another month for this. I was gonna put in a little part about Peppers feelings in this chapter, but then I was like "Fuck Pepper, I'll do that shit later. I'll write about Tony, bitches love Tony."

So this chapter is mainly about Tony, Loki, and with some little bits of Bruce thrown in, but he's mainly thinking about Tony, so really Bruce is rather redundant at this point. But really, who doesn't want to know what Brucey Bruce is thinking?

Read it, love it, review it! …I mean it… especially the reviewing part…

~One Insult Too Many~

Chapter 5: Delirious and Delusions

It was too hot, everything burned and Tony couldn't stifle the moan that escaped his painfully dry mouth. When was the last time he'd had any water? He couldn't really remember. His memories were so fuzzy at this point that he wasn't exactly sure he even knew where he was at the moment. Whenever he tried to focus his thoughts, his head would throb horribly and then the unbearable heat would eventually reclaim his attention once again.

He tried to stretch out his body a little, but his limbs felt tired and shaky. His breathing came out heavy and laborious, making his chest ache terribly every time it expanded. And there was something else, something_… in his chest and fuck_, _it hurt!_ He really couldn't remember what it was at the moment. He knew that it hadn't always been there, but that he needed it now, whatever the hell _it_ was.

So he put up with the way his heart jarred painfully against it, and the disturbing shifting of how his lungs rose and fell, constantly brushing against its' sides. How could his lungs be wrapped around this _thing_ and yet still function so well?

It hummed a little, sort of like a car engine really, which Tony took some comfort from. It didn't make the noise out loud though, the hum itself seemed to race through his chest, adding its own sound to the interworking's of his body. It was hard to listen to at this point, mainly because of the raw rattling coming from his lungs, but he had the strangest feeling that the hum would actually sound rather nice once it fell into rhythm with his heartbeat.

A sudden cough raked through his shivering frame and all thoughts about how _it_ felt were quickly forgotten as his body jerked painfully in response. What was wrong with him again? Oh yeah, he was fucking hot, and fucking tired, and awfully fucking sick. Basically, he was fucked.

He tried to remember what had caused him to become like this, but all he got was the memory of the first time he'd been fatally ill.

He'd had a fever then too.

It had been her fault, Riana or Briana, he was sure it was something that ended with –iana. She had been his new nanny; his mother had been way too busy with her social get-togethers to be bothered to raise him and as for Howard… heh, yeah, that was likely.

Tony remembered that he'd really liked her; she'd had a pretty face and blue doe-like eyes that he'd immediately fixated on. He'd spent most of his time following her around for the three months she'd worked there and the first question he'd asked her, was if she were anything like Mary Poppins. She had laughed in response, it had been a lovely sound, and called him adorable before humming the tune "Feed the Birds".

From that point on her nickname became Mary and they became friends, his very first.

He'd idolized her.

There had even been some nights where he'd shyly told her that he wished she was his mother instead of Maria Stark. She always smiled and said she secretly wished that too, she would then kiss him on the forehead before tucking him in, wishing him sweet dreams. It was more than what his mother or Howard had ever done before.

However, "practically perfect in every way" couldn't last forever.

He soon started to get sick, doctors came and went, but they couldn't find the cause. It eventually became so bad that he was taken to the hospital and put in the ICU. Those last few days of his illness had been hazy; he could remember seeing his mother sometimes and Obie had been there more than Howard, but at least his old man had visited him a few times, even if it was for the sake of his public image.

Mary never came to visit.

Thallium poisoning, the doctors said. Mary had been lacing his food with Thallium Sulfate for the last month.

It turned out that Mary was actually a remnant from some sort of shady Soviet Union weapons manufacturers that had been one of Howard's more dangerous competitors. They had been shut down by the Russian military after American thermal imaging scans had found out about their numerous missiles pointed towards the US.

The poisoning had been a revenge shtick. Too bad it wouldn't have affected Howard all that much.

The result had pushed most American citizens into demanding "justice" and the world feared that the Cold War would soon become World War III. Nuclear missiles, shifting alliances and assassination attempts on four year olds, back then it had all seemed so imminent. Thankfully though, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons came about shortly after and the public was pacified a little.

Tony however, never looked at a nanny or Mary Poppins for that matter, the same way ever again.

Another coughing fit tore through his chest and he gasped as he felt his ribcage tighten uncomfortably around that thing in his chest. '_Damn it, what the hell is that_–' And then he remembered, the Arc Reactor. Yinsen had put it in, removing cartilage and organizing his organs around the metal casing. He needed it or else the shrapnel would dig deeper into his chest and tear his heart apart.

But fuck, was this thing was painful.

"_Yinsen, I don't feel good._" He said feverishly, expecting to hear the man to scoff about how such an in-depth chest operation would make anyone feel unwell, before offering a cup of water that was most likely his own. Dry humor, but a giving man, Tony knew there was no one else like Yinsen out in the world.

He waited for the man to respond, but after a moment, when nothing came, he worriedly lifted his head to search for his fellow inmate. He couldn't see the room, his vision was too damn blurry, but he could make out a cage. '_Not good, not good. What if they got tired of waiting? Is this some sort of new punishment for making the Arc Reactor instead of instantly starting on their weapons?_'

"_Yinsen? Yinsen?!_" No response. Oh god, did they finally kill him? "_**YINSEN!**_"

~One Insult Too Many~

"_Tony, what are we doing out here?" Bruce asked with a sigh of irritation that would have made anybody tense for fear that the Other Guy would be making an appearance. Tony wasn't some anybody though; the man merely smirked in response before taking off his sunglasses and placing them on the corvette dashboard._

_Tony had dragged him out of his lab –the very same one that the playboy had given him the day he'd moved into Stark Tower– hours ago, saying that he had a surprise for him. He had, of course, been hesitant as he'd quickly learned that Tony had a very odd appreciation towards many things, meaning his surprises weren't always very good ones._

_This though, this was not what he had been expecting. _

_He'd been worried that Tony was dragging him off to join the man in another night of clubbing, which were places that he, and the Other Guy, didn't particularly care for. Since Tony and Pepper had broken up a few weeks ago, Tony seemed to spend all of his free time at those bars and dance clubs, occasionally dragging Bruce along when he'd rather be in the labs._

"_Seriously Tony, why did we just drive for two hours only for you to bring me to a junkyard?" He asked again as he got out of the car and watched Tony pull out his portable Iron Man suitcase. His pulse spiked at seeing Tony's suit and a feeling of unease burrowed itself into the pits of his stomach._

"_Just think of this as Candy Land for Mr. Hyde." Tony said casually as he activated the suit, the metal climbing up and around him to form his red and silver armor. _

"_Wait, what? I don't–"_

"_Have you ever seen what happens to a crosswire turbine when there's too much pressure?" Tony asked as he pushed up the face plate of his helmet to look at Bruce, who was currently wringing his hands nervously. _

"_Ah, yeah, it… uh… it explodes." He answered as he stopped his fidgeting and took a calming breath. This was science, something he could focus on instead of his surroundings. Besides, Tony had been a good friend for the last few weeks, there was no reason to think that Tony had brought him out here for anything unpleasant._

"_Yep, the blast is big, like almost nuclear explosion big. That's why one man came to the brilliant conclusion that pressure could be managed through relief valves, controlling whatever substance the build-up was affecting and keeping it from going boom. We're here to relieve you of your pressure." Tony said and he opened his mouth to speak, but Tony cut him off._

"_I bought this lovely landfill from the state of New York about a week ago. It's approximately the size of three football fields and is located an hour away from the nearest town. Also, I'm here to make sure that the Hulk doesn't go running off anywhere else, just in case. I figure there are moments where you simply can't hold him back because everything has just been building up until the point that you explode. This place is your relief valve." Tony said as he gestured towards the towering mounds of metal._

"_Tony… I, I don't know." Bruce said weakly as he looked back at the scrapyard with new eyes. _

_A place where the Other Guy could come out, where he could let the Hulk could go wild without worry, being angry all the time didn't always work. He had never said it to anyone, but it was exhausting to keep the Other Guy back at some moments. Perhaps this was exactly what he needed though, a way to pacify his inner beast._

"_As I said before Big Man, you need to strut, let lose a little steam. Besides, I think the Other Guy will be pretty happy about this, just saying." Tony said as he nudged the taller man who looked down at the ground. Tony sighed before placing a hand on his fellow Avengers' shoulder. _

"_You don't have to do this if you don't want to; I'm not going to force you. We can hop back in the car and never speak of this again if that's what you want." Tony said more seriously than Bruce had ever heard the man sound before._

_He exhaled heavily and unclenched his fists. He could just leave; he didn't have to do this. Tony was just trying to help, in his own odd, but caring way. Maybe he could do this, to just let it all go. At least for Tony, he could give the idea a shot._

"_Maybe… we could try it for the next month or so, trial and error?" He offered with a sigh as he gave Tony a small sad smile. "I mean, I'm not really sure what to expect. Ever since I got him all I've ever done is tried to control him, hold him back. I'm not sure I'm fond of the idea of letting him run wild, even in a controlled environment."_

"_You're not letting him out of your control Bruce, you're merely indulging yourself. I do that all the time." Tony said with a smile of his own as he walked into the junkyard with the younger man. "After all, all work and no play makes Brucey Bruce a very dull boy."_

Bruce woke up slowly, his dream or rather memory, still playing out before his closed eyelids.

That day, for the next three hours, the Hulk had run amuck through Stark's Scrapyard, as Tony had later begun to ridiculously call it. For the first hour, Iron Man had spent his time watching the Hulk smash everything in sight before apparently deciding to join in on the fun. There had supposedly been a car tossing contest that the Hulk had of course won and Tony had shown the Other Guy how to make a giant ball of metal by using rusted car bumpers.

He had listened attentively during the car ride back home, barely able to contain his disbelief as Tony described how he'd tried to teach the Other Guy how to play hide and go seek, which admittedly hadn't been a very good idea. The Hulk, obviously, had very little patience when it became his turn to be the seeker and Tony confessed that he might have cheated a little bit, as he'd used JARVIS to find the Other Guy by tracking the gamma radiation he emitted.

It was during the following week that Bruce began to notice that he'd felt a little different. He'd actually felt a little more… peaceful, calmer, happier.

From that point on, he and Tony had left every Sunday to go down to Stark's Scrapyard, letting the Other Guy run free for a few hours as he and Tony bonded over pointless destruction. It became exactly what Tony had meant it to be; it was a reliever for both him and the Hulk.

It was also more than that though, because finally he had found someone who didn't care about the Other Guy, who treated him as a friend, as the man he still was. He owed Tony so much for his startling acceptance, for his unexpected friendship. That gratitude had him spending the entire night working nonstop to find Tony, until he'd obviously passed out from lack of sleep. He couldn't even fathom trying to stay awake for three days like Tony casually did.

He would do anything he could to help the man he considered to be his greatest friend.

"Don't worry Tony, I'll find you, no matter what." Bruce said out loud to the empty lab as he pushed himself off of the desk he'd accidently fallen asleep on. The others had returned to the Tower a few hours ago, telling him about his task Fury had assigned him, a task he had already begun working on once Pepper had left to deal with Tony's company.

At the moment, Pepper thought it was best to tell the board and the public that Tony was feeling unwell and had retreated to his home in Malibu. Bruce wasn't sure how long that ruse would last. Tony was known for being in the spotlight and if he didn't make an appearance soon, people would start to get suspicious.

Colonel Rhodes had been updated on the situation by Pepper and Fury had asked for War Machine to come in to help the Avengers in case of an emergency. Bruce bit back a grimace as he thought about James Rhodes. He'd only met the man a few times, and he knew that the Colonel had been one of Tony's closest friends for some time, but the man was almost as big as a Captain America fan as Agent Coulson.

He'd seen Colonel Rhodes ask Tony about possibly meeting Steve many times, and the man somehow always missed the annoyed glares Tony sent him whenever the subject was brought up. Bruce truthfully didn't think that Tony hated Steve, but there were some moments where even he had his doubts.

Colonel Rhodes's last visit had ended in a fight where Tony had finally had enough with Rhodes blatant admiration for Steve. He wasn't exactly sure what the two men had said towards each other, but he knew that it had been bad when Tony refused to leave his lab for the next four days.

He had gotten a glimpse of Tony stumbling into the elevator on the fourth night, his clothes dirty and wrinkled while his hair had been wild and greasy. His complexion sickly, his face sunken and weary, and his entire body, _impossibly_, seemed to reek of stale alcohol. Bruce had never really forgiven Colonel Rhodes for putting Tony in that state.

"Jarvis, have you had any luck with the latest scans?" He asked, holding his breath and fidgeting with one of the holo-screens that were in front of him. It had taken him no time at all to get used to Jarvis, as the AI quickly became a confidant that he shamelessly took advantage of.

"_Negative Doctor Banner, I have been unable to locate Sir's exact location. Something is disrupting the Arc Reactors emitting signals. I can only surmise that he is located somewhere in New York City._" Jarvis answered and Bruce sighed.

"Try running the scan again, but on a BEG frequency. Maybe the broader spectrum will help pick up the Arc's energy better." Bruce said as he took off his glasses and tried to rub the sleep away from his still too worn-out eyes.

"_Of course Doctor Banner, also, Miss Potts has arrived with dinner and is waiting for you to join her in the main dining room._" Jarvis stated as a new screen appeared, displaying the latest scans' progress for Bruce to see.

"Thanks Jarvis, tell Pepper I'll be up in a few minutes." He said as he left the lab and headed toward his room, deciding to change his clothes and to freshen up a little, before joining her for dinner. "Alert me as soon as the latest scan is completed, alright?"

"_Understood, and might I suggest that you wear the sky blue shirt Miss Potts bought for you last week? I'm certain the gesture would be most appreciated._" Jarvis recommended and he smiled up at the ceiling before grabbing the shirt the AI was talking about.

"I don't know what any of us would do without you Jarvis." Bruce complimented as he made his way towards the elevator.

"_You'd be going to dinner in that horribly tacky purple shirt instead._" Jarvis quipped and Bruce felt the corners of his mouth tilt upwards slightly. Only Tony would build an AI that helped you and insulted you at the same time.

~One Insult Too Many~

Loki stirred, his mind slowly pulling itself out of the deep recesses of his subconscious. He let out a heavy sigh as he stretched his taut shoulders, his back cracking loudly in several places. He pulled himself sluggishly off of his bed, the room tilting and spinning dangerously before his eyes. He shut them immediately and focused on steadying his balance as he slowly counted to ten.

The process of destroying Odin's magical binds was a costly act, one that left him physically drained for days and his magic slow to respond. It was not unlike the process of erosion. Gradually, he could chip away at the wall separating him from his magic, but watching the progress from up close made it all seem so pointless.

Surely the Chitauri or the Avengers would find him before his magic was free, why even bother?

He clenched his fists in irritation before opening his eyes, relieved to find the room still once more. Those doubting contemplations had entered his mind on more than one occasion since his arrival on Midgard. The worries and uncertainties plagued his awareness constantly, both awake and in slumber.

'_What else am I meant to do then? Am I to simply roll over and expose my neck meekly to my executioners? How can I even entertain these thoughts of such a cowardly notion? Am I not a God? I will not allow myself to be felled so easily. Am I not a King? I will escape my enemies grasp until my magic is restored to me, and then everyone who has wronged me – Odin, Thor, the Avengers – they will be the ones to fall._' Loki thought to himself, the usual musings he rehearsed whenever his reservations returned.

The anger and revenge he thirsted for never failed to push away his uncertainties. He let those bitter emotions pour over him and fill him up to the point that no other sentiments could even stand such a righteous force.

"_Yinsen, please for __**fuck's sake**__, just answer me!_" He started at Anthony's shout, surprised by not the level at which he spoke, but by the way the words sounded.

Desperate.

The anger returned almost instantly. Anthony must have somehow contacted one of his friends, this Yinsen. How it was possible, Loki was not sure, but he be damned if he let his plans be ruined so early into the game. He slipped down the hall, his footsteps light so as not to alert Anthony of his presence. He wanted to see how his captive had managed to call for aide.

When he entered the room, he had not known what to anticipate. Perhaps a broken and empty cage on the floor, Anthony standing only a few mere feet away, speaking into some Midgardian device that Loki had not known to exist. Honestly, for once, the God of Mischief had no inkling as to what he might be dealing with. He'd dangerously underestimated human ingenuity too recently to be entirely assured that the restrictions he'd placed on Anthony still held true.

Whatever he had imagined though, he'd certainly not expected to find Anthony alone, screaming out at nothing as he repeatedly rammed his small shoulder into the walls of his cage. He searched the room quickly, but found nothing that led him to believe that Anthony was corresponding with another and his ire dissipated a little in the wake of confusion.

"Anthony?" He asked, his tone coming out more curious than angry at this point.

Tony froze the moment he heard that voice. It was posh and calm and soft. _It __**had **__**to be**__ Yinsen_, and the reason for why his voice sounded a little off was because of the fever, which was obviously fucking with his hearing. No one in the Ten Rings spoke like that; hell, no one besides their leader even spoke English.

He slowly exhaled, his worries fading with the action, and mentally thanked the unknown force that had brought his friend back to him alive.

"_Jesus, Yinsen, don't you ever fucking scare me like that again! Where the hell have you been? I've been calling your name for that last hour. Are you okay? Did they hurt you?_" Tony asked rapidly and Loki narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"No, Anthony, I am not harmed." Yinsen answered and he gave a relieved sigh before collapsing onto the floor of his cage. For some reason, he hadn't been able to get his damn hands to work right, so he'd gone for the second best option, forcing his way out. But now his shoulder hurt like a bitch and his already exhausted body was ready to collapse on him.

"_Good, that's good._" He said with a chuckle that quickly turned into a cough.

"Your condition has worsened." Yinsen said simply. Oh yeah, this was most definitely Yinsen. Not even two weeks ago he'd woken up to find a car battery strapped to his chest and Yinsen had simply given him a jar filled with shrapnel to keep as a souvenir, describing it as "pretty neat".

"_Yeah, well, even with your brilliant medical skills, a cave isn't the most sterile place to operate in. And what's with this Anthony shit, it's a hell of a lot worse than Stark._" He said tiredly as a shiver shot through his body.

Loki approached the cage cautiously, very much aware of the fact that Anthony was not in his right mind at the moment. The fever must have gotten worse. He took in Anthony's trembling form, his heavy breaths, his coughs, and finally, his hallucinations.

This Yinsen was obviously someone Anthony cared about, someone the mortal seemed to trust. Perhaps, if he played the part of this Yinsen, he might be able to use Anthony's affliction to his advantage.

"If it annoys you so much, I can call you Stark again." He said indifferently as he studied the mortal's body language. Anthony was obviously tired. He suspected this little conversation would not last as long as he would like.

"_Please do, I hate that name._" Tony responded tersely. A part of him wanted to tell Yinsen about why he hated his name, to tell the man about how horrible a father Howard had been, but he quickly banished the idea to the dark corners of his mind. While Yinsen knew a great deal more about him than most, Tony could only view sharing that bit of info as whining and complaining.

Besides, he was over Howard… sort of.

"As you wish my friend, how is your condition fairing?" Loki asked, the word friend leaving a bitter taste in his mouth. He was of course curious about Anthony's response, but he knew better than to ask. After all, even loved ones kept secrets from each other.

"_**You could have told me what I was from the beginning, why didn't you?"**_

"_**I wanted to protect you."**_

Lies.

'_Damn you, Odin._' He thought viciously as he shook off the unexpected and unwanted memory.

He did understand that this mortal, this Yinsen, was a healer of a sort. He would've been concerned about his patience's wellbeing and asking Anthony about his ailment might tell him what the operation had been exactly.

"_Well, my chest hurts like a motherfucker, but at least the Reactor seems to be working alright. Having some of my cartilage missing from my chest is a hell of a lot better than being dead._" Tony said as he bit back a yawn. He looked back up at Yinsen, but was only able to make out a pair of bright green eyes. Green, Yinsen's eyes had been green. Whatever doubts he had left concerning the identity of the man before him, withered away at the sight of those eyes.

"Hmm, I would think so." Loki commented calmly as his eyes flashed brightly at hearing Anthony's response. So, the Arc Reactor kept him alive? That information had most certainly not been made public, not even Agent Barton had known of this weakness.

And now he had that weakness to threaten Anthony with.

He narrowed his eyes and thought of all the questions he could possibly ask that would not disrupt Anthony from the illusion his fevered mind had created. There was truly only one safe question to enquire at this point.

"Tell me Stark, why do you hate your first name?"

"_Oh, because that's what my old man used to call me._" Anthony answered drowsily before he buried his head into his paws and curled up his small body. Loki stared down at him impassively, his mind inwardly reviewing all the knowledge he held on Howard Stark.

He was a genius, a good man, an inventor, a beloved husband, an entrepreneur, a warmonger.

"_I hate him._"

And quite possibly a terrible father.

~One Insult Too Many~

Okay, I really enjoyed writing everything in this chapter. I got to spread out a little bit, touching on Tony's childhood, which is always less than stellar. I figured that Tony, being the son of the Howard Stark, might have dealt with kidnappings and assassination attempts throughout his entire life.

In this story, Tony was born in July 1969, and the Thallium poisoning happened in 1973, making him four. A year later Howard introduced the 1974 Stark Expo on film, which Tony made an appearance in during Iron Man 2. This makes Tony 43 years old in my story and physically the oldest Avenger when not counting Thor. He became Iron Man in late 2010 and Loki attacked in May of 2012. The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons is real, however in reality it happened in 1970. I fucked with history a little bit, but it's my world so deal with it.

I really liked writing Bruce's part. At first I thought I wouldn't, but I really did enjoy myself. He's got like this unshakable loyalty to Tony now that I honestly believe to be possible. The fact that Tony and Rhodey had a fight will actually play a somewhat serious point in the future.

Finally, there's Tony confusing Loki with Yinsen because of his fever. Oh God, I loved this part. There was so much more emotion coming from Tony then the normal bullshit that he dishes out. His worries for Yinsen and the truth about how he feels towards his dad; it was all so wonderful for me to write. Plus, Loki found out about how important the Arc Reactor is, which is totally not good for Tony.

I wanted Loki to know that Tony hated his dad, but I had no idea how that would be brought up in a normal conversation. It's not like Tony would willingly share this information with Loki. This bit of info of course catches Loki's interest and will later be used against Tony in the future.

~Hexalys~


	6. Causing Problems and Punishment

I want to thank everyone who took the time to review!

First off, I want to apologize for how late this chapter is. I meant for it to come out two weeks ago, but I then I saw Rise of the Guardians and the Hobbit so I totally got distracted. On a side note, if you haven't seen either movie yet, then do so!

Please review people; I want to at least break the 100 review mark after this update.

~One Insult Too Many~

Chapter 6: Causing Problems and Punishment

Tony woke up to his head pounding and with a cough tearing through his sore throat. He groaned miserably and buried his face deeper into his paws. His head shot back up, eyes blinking slowly as he took in his transformed hands, before groaning again, but for a different reason this time. He'd hoped the whole turning into cat thing, was just a very disturbing dream, but apparently not.

Damn. Fuck. Shit.

"_What time is it?_" He mumbled to himself as he looked out of his cage, seeing a bit of light peeking in through the kitchen windows.

"7:18 in the morning, assuming that this Midgardian time piece is working correctly." A voice answered suddenly, surprising the hell out of Tony.

"_Jesus Christ!_" He shouted as he turned to see where Loki was, spotting the God's silhouette sitting on the couch in the shadowy living room. "_Why are you sitting in the dark?_"

"I was watching you slumber." Loki answered simply.

"… _Yeah, that's not creepy at all._"

"You were talking in your sleep, screaming actually." Loki continued, completely ignoring what he'd said. Tony felt as if a lead weight had dropped into his stomach. He didn't have nightmares; he had something much, much worse. Night terrors, they were the reason for why he avoided sleep like the plague. Insomnia may seem like a curse to some, but to him it was a welcomed blessing.

Jarvis knew of his… situation, and more often than not, woke him before the night terror escalated to the point that was dangerous for his heart rate. He still had shrapnel in his chest after all. Pepper, well she knew he had bad dreams, but she didn't know to what extent and he'd always made sure to stay awake whenever she'd used to share his bed.

He could never remember his night terrors, as that was one of the symptoms when having a night terror, but he'd watched the recordings Jarvis had taken of him. In those moments, he mostly screamed incoherently and thrashed about a lot, but sometimes, a few words could be heard through the disoriented yells.

_Yinsen. I'm sorry. Obie. Why._

He hated the fact that Loki might have witnessed one of his night terrors, that his enemy had seen him at his weakest. Because that's what his night terrors were, a weakness. He wasn't stupid; he'd had Jarvis read up on night terrors. For adults, they were extremely uncommon, as in less than 1% of the entire fucking population had them. Most cases were found in those suffering from PTSD, which he _**did not have**_, not matter what anybody said.

_In addition to the night terrors, some of the subjects gain many of the characteristics of depressed individuals including inhibition of aggression, self-directed anger, passivity, anxiety, impaired memory, and the ability to ignore pain._ Tony knew all of this; he'd re-read that bit of information for hours until he'd memorized every word without meaning to. Jarvis had suggested more than once that he see a doctor, get help, but he firmly considered it all to be complete and utter bullshit.

So what if he often forgot when he'd last eaten or the commitments that he'd made for the next morning to certain people or projects? That's what a PA, and Jarvis, was for, to remind him to do the menial things that weren't significant enough for him to be bothered to memorize. And if Pepper took his lack of memory as his normal irresponsible behavior, then he wasn't going to correct her.

So what if he'd gotten a bit more violent? It came with the territory of fighting bad guys and protecting the innocent. What was he supposed to do? Talk his enemies into submission? It didn't really matter that he would sometimes lose it in the labs as well, it's not like he ever broke anything important and Dummy was more than happy to clean up the mess.

So what if he had a habit of charging head first into danger, willing to take more damage than he had to? He was a bastard and deserved every second of it, nobody could argue that. He couldn't deny that he hated parts of himself. He hated the egotism, the callousness, the drinking, and the fact that he didn't want to change any of it. Then the textbook narcissism would kick in and he'd see all of these qualities as good things, because really, why fix something when it ain't broke?

So what if he was indifferent at times? Years ago, when people asked if he had a heart, he'd made jokes about it, asking what good a heart would be to a weapons dealer. That always got a chuckle out of Obie. – _Stane, dammit _– There were plenty of times where he'd see the destruction his enemies caused and simply did not care; there wasn't any desire to stop it or feelings of horror at seeing the dead bodies.

There was nothing.

He still rushed to help and saved any lives that he could, because he knew the indifference wouldn't last and that he'd regret it all later. If anything, the passivity made him try harder to be a better hero because he wanted to feel something in those moments. None of these things stopped him from being Iron Man or saving the day in the end.

He was perfectly fine.

"Who is Yinsen?" Loki asked, breaking Tony out of his thoughts and felt himself automatically stiffen at just hearing the man's name. He swallowed; the dryness of his mouth distracting him for a second, before he found himself focusing on Loki's bright green eyes.

He had always had a thing when it came to eye color. Pepper always thought it was just another one of his attempts to being annoying and difficult. In truth, it was just another paranoid habit he'd picked up, much like his dislike of being handed things.

He was naturally more wary of people with blue eyes, as most had proven to be his enemies in the past. Mary – _the not-nanny assassin _–, Justin Hammer – _the incompetent rival _–, Odin – _the one-eyed asshole _–, Howard – _the bastard _–, and Obie – _Stane, dammit, call him Stane _–, Rogers – _the shadow he was forced to live in _–, had blue eyes too.

Then there were the ones with brown eyes, filled with people he trusted and some he really didn't, but at least they were predictable. Pepper – _wonderful perfect Pepper –_, Rhodey – _his first friend _–, Happy – _the loyal bodyguard _–, Bruce – _his science bro _–, Fury – _even his secrets have secrets _–, Agent Romanoff – _or does she prefer Rushman _–

Finally, there was green and until recently, only one person had ever fallen into that area, Yinsen – _his doctor, mentor, friend, savior _–

Then there were the few people he hadn't been able to categorize yet. Thor – _quick to swing his hammer, but easy to get along with _– with his bright blue eyes that were so much like Odin's. Barton – _funny, if a little cynical at times _– and his brown hawk-like eyes, obviously loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D. but still fun to hang out with on occasion.

Of course, there were exceptions to every rule. Phil – _the stupid brave idiot _– had blue eyes, Raza – _the leader of the Ten Rings _– had brown eyes, and finally there was Loki – _the arrogant little prick _– who had green eyes.

In any case, he'd started judging people on their eye color. And perhaps that was why he was so thrown off whenever he looked at Loki's eyes, because every time he saw them, he was painfully reminded of Yinsen.

He wasn't saying that Loki and Yinsen had the same eyes, because that was impossible. Yinsen's eyes had been more almond shaped, with a softer, dark green color. They were warm, but worn and filled with stubbornness. Loki's eyes were wide, to the point of expressive even, though that did little good seeing as the expressions Loki made were never friendly. The green was vibrant and of a lighter shade, but they somehow still managed to look so cold and menacing.

"_No one, he's nothing._" He answered after a moment and stared into those bright green eyes, willing himself to not look away. But oh, what a lie that was, Yinsen was everything. Yinsen was the reason for why he was still alive, the reason for why everyone called him Iron Man instead of the Merchant of Death.

"Hmm, you seemed very much attached to him last night." Loki commented, his gaze burning into Anthony. It seemed the mortal did not remember his hallucination from last night. "Perhaps, I could meet him in person, one lowly mortal would not be so difficult to find…" Silence greeted the less than subtle threat before Anthony scoffed, earning him a raised eyebrow from the God.

"_Good luck with that, he's dead._" The words came out more bitter than Tony had intended, but the bitterness was better than him bursting into tears. Not that he would, he hadn't cried since he was nine years old and his old man had reduced Dummy to a bunch of broken parts during a fit of drunken rage. "_Hey, you plan on giving me any food or water? I kind of need to be alive in order for you to dish out your righteous vengeance._" Tony said sardonically, trying to change the subject. Plus, he really was thirsty and the dryness of his throat was starting to feel itchy and it was irritating.

Loki continued to stare at the mortal for another minute, slightly amused at his barefaced attempt at misdirection. He gave a tired sigh and pulled himself off the couch, feeling a weary ache pulse from his strained body, knowing that there would be time to interrogate Anthony in the future. He grabbed the cage and set it onto the floor before turning his attention to the items he'd bought for his "pet".

Two simple ceramic bowls were already set out, as he'd originally meant to have fed Anthony once they'd returned from the veterinarian yesterday. He filled one with water from the sink and set it onto the floor next to Anthony's cage. For the second dish, he filled it to the brim with dry food and placed the bowl back onto the floor next to its twin.

He unlatched the door to Anthony's cage and stepped back to watch, slightly intrigued to see how the arrogant man would adapt to the situation. The mortal's steps were shaky at first, as he obviously was not completely accustomed to walking on four limbs yet. That or his illness was taking its toll on Anthony's frail body. It didn't help that his paws would occasionally slide across the hardwood floor, unable to get any traction.

Anthony went straight for the water, trying to drink from it as any human would, only to end up spluttering and chocking as water greeted his sensitive nose. The mortal stared at the bowl for another minute before hesitantly sticking his tongue out. Loki scoffed, making Anthony freeze in place, his small shoulders hunching inwardly, but he continued to drink.

Satisfied with witnessing Anthony's slight humiliation, he returned to the kitchen to get something for himself to drink as well.

"_What the hell is this supposed to be?_" Tony almost shouted as he looked into the other dish. He'd prepared himself for something gross, like that nasty wet cat food or even, ugh, _tuna fish_, but he had not been expecting kibble. Wasn't that for dogs?

"That, is the only type of food you will be getting Anthony, unless you manage to catch a stray mouse to satisfy your hunger. I suggest you eat quickly, else I take it back and you get nothing for today." Loki answered from the kitchen as he pulled the mortal's medicine out of a nearby cabinet.

Tony bit back a growl and turned to look down at his food, finding out that he had to drink like a cat was degrading enough. He was never going to get used to having to slurp up the water instead of just drinking it by mouthfuls. _Fucking Odin_.

He stared down at his food, unable to ignore the gnawing ache of hunger in his stomach. His pride was the only thing that was stopping him and he knew he wouldn't eat, not today at least. Eventually he would, he had caved in Afghanistan and he would cave here, it was only a matter of how long before he did. He knew his regular body could go for days without eating, a full week even, but he didn't know how long this new body could last. That was fine though, he always liked to keep things interesting.

Still, the knowledge that he would eventually eat kibble was enough to push him over the edge. The events from the last two days replayed in his head and he recalled each insult and humiliation Loki had dealt him with perfect clarity. He felt pissed and a need to get even, to do something that would affect Loki in a negative way. He needed to resist, to fight back, to show that he was not going to take Loki's shit like some poor spineless fuck.

So Tony did what he was best at, causing problems.

He knocked the bowl over, the kibble bits spreading out like a tsunami over the hardwood floor and ran down the hallway as fast as he could, ending up underneath Loki's bed. His side stung, and he was already panting from his brief sprint, but he could feel the familiar rush of adrenaline pumping through his veins. In the grand scheme of things, he knew his actions were pointless and petty, merely a nuisance, but it was all he could do to revolt against Loki at the moment.

He heard Loki growl from down the hall, his feet stomping onto the floorboards, making them tremble slightly. He could feel each step reverberate through his small frame, his bones rattling with every approaching stomp. '_Okay, maybe this wasn't my best idea._' He thought warily as he saw Loki's feet enter the room, but he'd been damned if he didn't feel just a little smug.

"Anthony, come out from under there right now." Loki threatened, his tone sounding dark and Tony felt his hackles rise as he crept away from Loki.

"_No._" He said, not even caring for how petulant and childish he sounded. He suddenly had the image of a mother trying to get her resistant son off of a jungle gym in a public park, the other parents shooting the mother looks of sympathy. Kids were a pain in the ass; he had no idea why Pepper had wanted them.

"You do not want me to come and retrieve you." Okay, Loki sounded pissed and while that's what he had been aiming for, he kind of regretted his earlier actions now. Just a little.

"_There's no way I'm going to let myself be shoved back in that fucking cage!_" Well, at least he sounded a bit more serious then bratty this time. This was bad, he knew it was bad. Loki would catch him eventually and then there would be hell to pay. Still, there was no going back now.

He could easily imagine Loki glaring down at the bed, mentally deciding if it would be worth it to lower himself down onto his hands and knees simply to "retrieve" his runaway captive. He was really hoping that Loki would just leave; banking on the God having more pressing matters to deal with. He heard another growl and suddenly Loki was on his knees, glaring at him in a way that made his skin crawl.

Loki's hand shot out to grab him and Tony reacted without thought, his fangs pierced into that soft spot between the thumb and pointer finger. He let go as soon as he felt Loki pull his arm back and hissed as the covers fell back down, blocking him from Loki's murderous gaze. It was silent for a moment except for his heavy panting and Tony waited for the explosion. '_Holy fuck, I can't believe I just bit him!_' The bedroom door slammed shut, but he could see that Loki's feet hadn't moved.

He was cornered, trapped.

Tony felt his limbs start to tremble and he knew it wasn't from fear, but from exhaustion. Right, he was still sick. He'd almost forgotten that part. A cough tore through his throat, leaving it aching and raw and his head throbbed painfully. He slumped down onto the floor, the cold wood felt good on his suddenly too hot skin. Maybe… he could close his eyes for a second and rest for a bit… just to regain his breath…

He jerked awake with yelp as he felt something tighten around his right arm painfully; crushing it with such force, he was sure it was going to break at any moment. He bucked and pulled against whatever it was that had a hold of him, cursing and shouting threats at the top of his lungs. The pressure increased in response and he screamed as he felt something cave in.

He was released suddenly and was dropped onto something soft. He opened his eyes, unaware of having closed them, and found himself gazing up at Loki. He moved to back away and put weight onto his front right leg, collapsing in pain almost instantly.

~One Insult Too Many~

Loki stared down at the mortal in disdain, wanting nothing more than to break his other three legs. The only reason for why he didn't was simple; he didn't want to break his new toy too soon. He wanted to have fun with the mortal, take his time with the Man of Iron. After all, humans were such fragile things and the mortal's new form proved to be even more delicate.

Still, Anthony had crossed a line. Rebel, revolt, riot, Loki was not new to such actions. He'd employed similar inadequate tactics against Odin and Thor in the past when he'd felt they'd done wrong by him and his. And because Loki had such experiences, he knew he had to immediately show Anthony that rebelling was the worst thing he could do in his situation. He needed to nip this in the bud, as the Midgardian saying went.

"_Fuck, you broke my arm you sadistic bastard!_" Anthony shouted and the God merely glared at the cat that was curled up in pain on the sheet of his bed.

The mortal hissed several more insults at him, each more colorful and vulgar than the last until the room was silent except for Anthony's sharp breaths. Loki saw every twitch, shake and gasp that the mortal took, somewhat captivated by how much the small creature was shivering from either shock or fear.

"Understand this well Anthony, if you ever pull another act like this again, a fractured limb will be the least of your worries. I will leave you in such agony, that the very idea of ever walking again will fill you with terror." He said firmly as he grabbed Anthony by the scruff of his neck and carried him back to the living room, leaving the mess where it was as he intended to make Anthony eat every bit off the floor later. "Now, I believe your earlier actions of disobedience deserve punishment."

With that, he crafted a spell, throwing Anthony into an enchanted sleep before the mortal could protest. He settled himself on the couch and placed Anthony on his lap, laying a hand on the mortal's head and summoning up a haunting memory. His interest had been peaked yesterday when he saw how poorly Anthony had reacted to getting a shot and he was curious to see why the mortal held fear for such a small thing.

At the command of his magic, a memory shot forward from Anthony's mind and he found himself standing in a overly crowded and dark room. The smell of smoke and something else burning filled his nose, along with other unpleasant odors. The obnoxious beat of some sort of Midgardian music pounded through the walls just enough for the words to be muffled, but still loud enough to make his already throbbing head ache even worse.

He looked around the room, trying to spot where Anthony was, but didn't find him until the only door opened, allowing entrance to a haggard looking mortal youth. He watched as the mortal collapsed on a nearby couch, looking very young, especially since he was surrounded by people who were at least ten years his senior. Age was not an easy thing for Loki to guess when it came to mortals, but he estimated that Anthony could hardly be older than fourteen.

Anthony looked rung out, there were bags under his bloodshot eyes and there were smudges of some sort of grease covering his dirty and wrinkled clothes. His small jaw sported a bruise and a pair of sunglasses rested on the top of his head. There was a tired smile on the mortal's face though, and a mischievous look in his eyes that the God instantly recognized.

"Hey Stark, glad you could make it to the party!" Another mortal said as he approached Anthony and handed him a glass filled with some sort of amber liquid. Even from a few feet away, he could smell the alcohol permeating from the drink.

"Like I'd miss it, you said you got your hands on something special!" Anthony shouted back in order to be heard over the music. The man he was talking nodded before running off, leaving Anthony alone with his drink.

Loki watched as the boy solemnly nursed his glass, one hand lightly ghosting over the mark on his jawline. The man from before returned quickly and Anthony's smile returned as well. The façade was impressive. Loki doubted anyone noticed how depressed Anthony truly was.

"Here it is man, just got this in last night." The human said and he produced a needle with some sort of clear substance in its cylinder. Anthony pulled back suddenly, allowing the God to see apprehension marring the younger mortal's face.

"…You sure this shit is safe?" Anthony asked as he stared down at the needle and Loki found his interest peaked. The boy discreetly let his eyes rove over the room, but no one was paying them even the slightest bit of attention. Obviously, whatever Anthony was doing, it was either immoral or illegal, possibly both.

"What's the matter Stark, you scared? Huh, didn't peg you as a wimp. I guess your old man's right about you." The man sneered as he moved to put the needle away and turned to leave. Anthony's hand shot out and gripped the other human's wrist. From his position, Loki could see the victorious smirk on the man's face that Anthony could not.

"How much?"

Anthony and the man proceeded to haggle over the price for the next several minutes. Loki found himself slightly impressed with how the young mortal was able to cut down the starting price nearly down to half of what the man had originally wanted. The mortal looked irritated, but quickly caved as Anthony brought up the fact that it was getting late. The boy had one more drink before leaving. Once Loki moved to follow him, the memory shifted and he found himself in a different room.

The new room was much cleaner than the last, but like before, there was music. It wasn't loud like the last melody had been, but soft and whimsical. Like before, the music came from beyond the room he was in, and it too was muffled slightly by the walls and closed door. The room itself was rather spacious, filled with gadgets and trinkets strewn haphazardly across the floor and desk. He spotted Anthony dressed in the same rumpled clothes from earlier, sitting on an unmade bed as he wrapped some sort of fabric tightly around his upper arm.

He watched silently as Anthony lifted the needle off of the bed and let it hover over a vein on his forearm for several minutes. A layer of sweat had broken over the boy's brow and his hands shook slightly as he bit at his bottom lip nervously. Anthony sighed after a moment and placed the needle back onto his bed, bringing up a hand to brush over the bruise again.

"C'mon Tony, it's not hard." The mortal said to himself, sounding unsure and tired before he suddenly glared at the needle, his attitude shifting abruptly. "Fuck, I don't need this, only losers need this and I'm no loser!" He shouted and stood up from the bed, knocking the needle onto the ground.

Anthony didn't even give it a second glance as he stomped across his room and made to open the door. The sudden sound of something crashing into the floor from somewhere deeper in the house rang out, followed by a yell and an angry argument.

"_**ANTHONY!**_" The young version of Anthony froze, his breaths suddenly coming in panicked as the voices grew louder. One was female and the other was obviously male. Anthony ran back to his bed and picked up the needle. Within a matter of seconds, he jabbed it into his arm, grunting a little as the injected clear substance entered his body, not even leaving a drop in the shaft.

He slowly sat on the bed as he pulled out the needle, his breathing slowly slightly before he gasped suddenly and his head shot up, looking directly at Loki. The God saw Anthony's pupils shrink in size drastically, before he fell forward and collapsed onto the floor as he went into some sort of fit, twitching spastically as a white foamy substance erupted from his mouth.

The voices were at the door and it was shoved open by a man who was obviously intoxicated. He looked very much like Anthony did, though he stood taller and had a thin mustache instead of that ridiculous goatee the mortal wore. A woman was behind him, looking worn, but still quite beautiful. She had reddish-brown hair and soft brown eyes; far too many worry lines tarnished her delicate face.

The male did not pause at seeing Anthony thrashing on the floor, to busy demanding that the boy stand and take his talking to like a man. The woman however, rushed forward, her calls for her Anthony bordering on hysteric. It took the man a few minutes longer to realize that something was wrong and he order another person, who had come at hearing the commotion, to send for an ambulance.

The memory shifted again and Loki found himself standing next to Anthony, who was laid down in a white sheeted bed. Tubes of every different size were attached to him at different points of his body and his eyes were covered by bandages. The woman from before, who Loki assumed to be the mortal's mother, sat on the other side of his bed, her hands brushing through Anthony's hair. Another mortal in a white coat stood off to the side, reading over some sort of paper.

"So, he'll be alright?" Anthony's mother asked with a slight tremor in her tone. The other man nodded, leading Loki to believe that he was some sort of healer.

"He should be fine now Mrs. Stark. We've flushed the poison from his systems and his sight should return within the next couple of days." The man paused before he fidgeted slightly. "If he needs to speak to someone, I can recommend a friend. She's very good at what she does." Anthony's mother stiffened at the healers words and softly shook her head no, but the healer continued. "If you're worried about people finding out–"

"_Don't._" The woman said suddenly, her tone harsh and firm. "Just please, don't." She continued more gently this time and the healer nodded silently before leaving the room.

"Do you think I tried to kill myself too?" Anthony asked suddenly, jolting his mother out of her stupor, his tone sounding bitter and hurt. The woman recovered and hugged him as she pet the back of his head lightly, Anthony made no move to return her embrace.

"Oh, Tony…" The woman said softly as she pulled away to look at her son. "Why did you do it?" She asked suddenly and jerked back when he slapped her hands away from him.

"I didn't, I was looking for a fucking rush, _that's all!_ The needle was supposed to be full of Opium, not Benzene! That backstabbing bastard tried to kill me, would have succeeded too if Howard hadn't been drunk off his ass, suppose I should be grateful for that." Anthony growled to himself and the woman gave a soft sigh of relief that her son didn't fail to miss. He gave her a vicious smile and chuckled darkly, making her look away from him, eyes darting across the room in an uneasy manner.

"No, I didn't try to kill myself. Don't worry; you're not that terrible of a mother." He paused there, taking in her closed off look, in the shame that she failed to hide. "I can only imagine what my attempt at suicide would do to your public image." She flinched at his flippant tone, her eyes focused on the headboard behind him.

"Tony, I–" She started, but was interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Loki turned to see the man from before, Anthony's father he concluded, standing in the doorway and looking far angrier than in the last memory. He also looked much more sober. From the way that Anthony stiffened, Loki could tell that Howard Stark's sobriety was a worse state to face than his drunken rage.

"Out, Maria." Were the man's clipped words and she gave a weak look to her son, who answered with a blank expression, before lowering her head and leaving.

The memory shifted again and this time Loki found himself in a much different environment. Before him, Anthony was tied down to iron bed frame, the man struggling vigorously against the straps that kept him from escaping.

A lantern was placed on a nearby table and Loki could see the collection of needles scattered over its surface along with pliers, pokers and other unpleasant things. A new mortal stood on the other side of the table, hidden mostly in the darkness of the cave they were in, letting only his hands enter the light as they slid over the different instruments.

"Stark, you will make us weapons, yes?" The man asked in a very rough attempt at English. Anthony furiously shook his head no and the man sighed, not looking at all put out by the answer, before picking up a random needle from the table and advancing towards Anthony. Loki turned to look at Anthony, finding the man to be around the same age as when they'd first met months ago.

He was covered in dirt, his hair was wild and greasy and his beard was slightly unkempt. It was the man's chest that grabbed the God's attention the most though. Anthony's shirt had been removed giving Loki a clear view of where his Arc Reactor was supposed to be. Instead though, the God only found bloodstained bandages and some wires sticking out of the area.

Loki's eyes shot up to Anthony's face and he saw the mortal's eyes were wide with fear as the other man plunged the needle into his arm. Like before, it took a moment for the reaction to occur and suddenly Anthony was screaming at the top of his lungs, thrashing more ferociously than earlier. Threats bled from the man's mouth, promises about how he'd burn everyone and everything to the ground, about how they'll scream for mercy and how he would only laugh in response.

Eventually the threats became bribes, before finally the bribes became pleas for the pain to end.

He pulled out of Anthony's memories only when he began to feel the strain on his magic. He stared down at the mortal that lay on his lap, who was now thrashing and screaming incoherently, before depositing him in his cage. Leaving the mortal to suffer from the nightmares that came with his sleep induced state.

~One Insult Too Many~

He stood at the bottom of the stone steps like usual, looking up at the balcony his Master never seemed to venture from. The Other was never sure of what his Master did up there, but he knew better than to ask or try to understand. His Master's actions and ideals were worlds beyond his comprehension.

He hadn't approached his Master in months, not since he'd had to deliver the news of Loki's failure. His Master had been most displeased, that smile gracing his face, promising pain and death. He had barely been able to escape his Master's wrath by promising him vengeance against those that had defeated the Chitauri. Unfortunately, the Other could not deal with the failure of a God personally as he was not a fighter; he was a keeper of knowledge and servant to the Master, nothing more. It was with that knowledge that though, that he'd been able to locate Loki.

The fool was hiding away on Earth.

The Chitauri had already proven themselves inadequate against the humans, he dared not send anymore as he knew even the best warriors would be defeated. So he branched out and searched the realms for other, more capable fighters. His searching had brought the oddest pair to his attention, an enchantress and her pet warrior, a lethal combination between magic and might.

"I would demand you tell me why I am here, beast. I tire of your silence." The witch hissed and he idly wondered if she would still be able to cast spells without a tongue.

"I expect you to be more amiable when addressing me, witch. Do not forget it was I who freed you from your prison." He snarled back, his own magic lashing out at the woman and her pet, sending the both of them to their knees. The witch took a breath to steady herself and shot a firm look over at her companion as he moved to grab the massive battle-axe that was strapped to his back.

"Forgive my… impertinence, I am simply eager to enjoy the freedom you have so graciously granted me." The witch said, her tone lacking the irritation from before. He was not so easily fooled. He could see her distaste of him, and so long as she refrained from showing such disrespect to the Master, the Other would not punish her.

Not yet at least.

"I require you to seek out two creatures, one that you already know and the other, a Earthling warrior by the name of Iron Man. It is these two beings that led to the failure of my Master's army. I would have them dead." He said to the woman who was now smirking, her pale green eyes now honestly looking interested instead of annoyed.

"And how would you like me to kill these two? Quickly and in the shadows or perhaps you would like for me to play with them a little, draw it out and send a message to others to never cross you again?" Amora asked pleasantly, her mind already shifting through dozens of spells.

"I promised the one, agony like he'd never known should he fail us. I desire for this undertaking to bleed true, for him and this mortal to cower at your feet, begging for death." The Other said, his hood hiding the bloodlust in his eyes, but unable to mask the thirst and hatred of his words.

Amora, for a single moment, felt a trickle of fear bubble in the far reaches of her mind. She was not so willing to make a deal with one who took failure so harshly. She quickly brushed that thought aside; she obviously would not fail in this mission like her predecessor had. She had of course simply thought about ignoring this Other and leaving to find a way to make Thor hers again, but she had seen this creature's army, had felt his magic and knew that she would never be able to outrun him for very long.

"And what, may I ask, is the name of my other target?" His smile was made up of gray teeth, blood seeping out from the gums and swelling over them in a way that made Amora inwardly wretch.

"Loki of Asgard."

~One Insult Too Many~

Oh shit, Amora and Skurge have now made an appearance, as if Tony didn't have enough troubles already. I have to admit, I'm not usually a fan of brining in antagonists that some of my readers may not know about. However, I like the whole Amora and Skurge being bounty hunters thing and I thought it a better idea to use them than make an original character.

I want to make you to hate the Other, like with a fiery passion, so he'll do some things that will really piss you off in the future.

For those of you wondering, Thanos will probably not make an appearance in this except for at the very end and even then it will be very brief. I am planning on writing a sequel to this and he'll make more of an appearance in that, but that's not for a while still.

I wasn't really sure how to approach Loki in this chapter. He had to be harsh, because honestly, he's still pretty evil at this point. I know people like to use the whole, "Loki was controlled by the Chitauri" plotline, but that's not what I'm using in this story. He's a bad dude in an even worse way, but we all know that he didn't start out that way and that's the important part.

Redemption of such a complicated character is never easy.

~Hexalys~


	7. A Moment of Insight

I want to thank everyone for taking the time to review!

Boy, it took a little while for this chapter to come out, huh? To be honest, I sort of had a major block for where to go next after the last chapter. Eventually I just pushed this story off to the side to focus on other stories. But then I saw Iron Man 3 last week and got reenergized to continue writing more about Tony, so here ya go.

Review or else I'll beat the shit out of your grandma… just kidding… but seriously, I'll fucking do it.

~One Insult Too Many~

Chapter 7: A Moment of Insight

"Anything?" Fury asked his acting second in command, Maria Hill. She shook her head and he cursed loudly. Ironically, the Director was sure that Stark would be able to locate one lone cat with an Arc Reactor easily.

"It's only been forty hours since Stark went missing sir. We'll find him." She tried to assure him, her eyes glancing over at the agents who had stopped working at witnessing their Director's reaction. He gave a harsh sigh before crossing his arms over his chest, knowing he couldn't afford to look tired at the moment. '_I'm getting too old for this shit._'

"If I may sir, I believe I've found an event that could be related to our missing Avenger." The familiar voice made all movement in the room come to a halt. Eyes widened on almost every face as Agent Coulson waltzed into the control room, looking perfectly healthy even though his demise had been reported months ago. "Get back to work people." He said without a glance, his tone both firm and light. "Agent Hill, good to see you again."

Fury turned, his single eye taking in Hill's stiff posture, before it landed on Coulson. The agent stood calmly, seeming untroubled and perfectly healthy. Fury knew better though. He could still recall the medic's report. "_He has some_ _torn muscles, a shattered rib, a punctured lung, and has lost too much blood. Frankly, it'll be a miracle if he pulls through, sir._" Yet here Coulson stood, three months later and walking like he'd never been on his deathbed.

"You're supposed to be in recovery Agent Coulson." Fury said as he gave his agent a hard look. The man simply shrugged his shoulders, his odd and unflappable smile covering his lower face. "You're not to be on duty for another month." Formalities really, Coulson had already passed every physical and psychological test with flying colors.

"Well, considering the situation, I thought I'd come back a little earlier than scheduled. Besides, the only thing stopping my reinstatement was the mandatory paperwork of brining me back from the dead." The agent responded calmly, sending a small nod to Agent Sitwell who smirked in return. It was silent for a few minutes and room seemed to holding its breath.

"You said you had something?" Fury finally asked and Coulson's smile widened a bit further. "I take it you've updated yourself on the situation?"

"As Mr. Stark would say, I did the reading. There was an insurance claim from a taxi driver made on the night that Mr. Stark went missing. He claims he crashed into a city streetlight to avoid hitting a small feline." He passed the witness report over to Fury, who took it eagerly after two days of no results. "The incident happened a block away from Stark's Tower."

"Are there any cameras on that particular street?" He asked and Coulson nodded, borrowing one of the numerous computers and putting the recorded feed on a holo-screen in front of the Director. The picture quality was rather poor, but a bit of scrubbing got rid of most of the graininess. Fury saw a small dark form run onto the corner side of the screen, stopping in the street as the taxi blared its horn. The vehicle swerved, hitting the streetlight, and the cat bolted off screen. The whole event was over in twenty seconds. "Rewind and focus; close in on Stark."

Coulson did as he was told; a frozen still of the feed was enlarged, showing the unmistakable but blurred image of the Arc Reactor displayed on the small cats' chest.

"_Son of a bitch._" He hissed through clench teeth. He'd hoped, he'd actually fucking prayed, that Thor had just been blowing things out of proportion. He hadn't been though; Tony fucking Stark was an actual fucking cat. From the corner of his eye, he saw Coulson's jaw tense. For whatever screwed up reason that Fury was sure he would never understand, his agent actually liked Stark.

"This is all the information I have; the trail grew cold after this initial sighting." Coulson said after a moment, his eyes focused on the video feed in front of him. "Any other footage taken from outside cameras nearby on that night have already been recorded over."

"Then we expand our search to those with better security measures." Fury ordered. "I want everyone looking at tapes from places that actually give a fuck about their security cameras. That means banks, expensive establishments and high-end apartment buildings." The surrounding agents immediately got to work, knowing that they had a limited window of opportunity. Even the highest maintenance of businesses kept their security footage for a week.

As Coulson moved to do as ordered, he was stopped as the Director laid a hand on the man's forearm. The two shared a look, one that showed their many years of working together. Fury had already admitted it to Stark and Rogers, Coulson was his one good eye, his advisor and most trusted agent.

"I think it's time the Avengers were bumped up to Level 7 clearance. Stark's absence is already taking a toll on Doctor Banner and Thor." Coulson nodded, understanding the words that hadn't been said. S.H.I.E.L.D. could not afford to upset or break ties with either man. The Hulk and Thor were their two heaviest hitters, followed up by Iron Man and Captain America.

"The Avengers weren't informed of the situation?" Coulson asked, a hardness taking up residence in his blue eyes.

It had not been his intention to keep the team in the dark for so long, but in Fury's opinion, the moment of revealing Agent Coulson's survival had never come. Perhaps, he'd just never wanted to see the looks on their faces once they realized that he'd manipulated them. In any case, he could only shake his head at Coulson's question, unable to offer a reason for his actions. The team had needed the push.

"I'll leave it to you to update them on Stark's situation."

~One Insult Too Many~

Tony woke screaming. He didn't know where he was, but for some reason his thoughts seemed to linger on Howard and on one of his more extreme sessions in Afghanistan. He shuddered, that particular set of torture had been one of the worst. He'd never looked at needles the same way again after that. Not that he'd been a fan before, but still.

As he tried to stand, a fresh scream ripped through his already very sore throat. He immediately crumpled to the ground, hissing as the metal beneath him agitated his hurt front leg. He was grateful for the fact that he'd remembered he was currently in cat form, too bad he hadn't remembered his broken arm. His leg or arm, he wasn't fucking sure what to call it now, was curled up to his chest protectively, throbbing in pain and making him want to whimper.

"Ah, Anthony, I see you've awakened at last." Loki said blithely, Tony didn't have it in him to lift his head and glare at the God. He could tell that Rock of Ages was close by though. Instead, he focused on his breathing and mentally tried to block out the pain. It wasn't working at all because that mind over matter theory was complete bullshit. "How's the leg fairing?"

"_It's my arm you asshole!_" He hissed, deciding that he was never going to call what was supposed to be his right arm a front leg ever again. Loki shrugged, looking like he didn't give a shit, which was actually probably pretty accurate now that Tony thought about it. "_And it's broken, you fucktard._" He was startled as something slammed onto the top of his cage, scaring the hell of him and jarring his broken limb.

He couldn't hold back the whimpers this time and he hated himself for it.

His wide eyes landed on the hand above him that had managed to dent the metal cage and his gaze shifted to Loki's face. Despite himself, he edged away from the furious look the God was giving him. Very much aware of his pathetic state at that moment and of what Loki could do to him.

Reindeer Games didn't look mad as in angry, well he did, there was obviously rage there, but he mostly looked insane, crazy, coo-coo. '_Bag of cats._' The words Bruce had spoken months ago, that he'd said to Odin just days before, came back to Tony in that moment.

He couldn't help it, he laughed.

It wasn't a good laugh either. There was a sharpness to it that rang throughout the room and it was tainted with something dark and fathomless. A swell of hysteric thoughts hovered just beyond his tenuous state, and a pulling tide of inescapable emotions threatened to boil over. Darkly, he had to wonder if Loki was the only one with cats in his head. '_Odin has a sick sense of humor._' Irony, Tony was really beginning to hate the concept.

A weapons dealer is almost killed by his own weapons. A man who'd claimed to have no heart for years is reduced to a mechanical building one in order to live. A blind fool gets betrayed by the man he trusted most. A Merchant of Death globalizes world peace as Iron Man. Tony was beginning to find that his life was the epitome of irony.

"What, pray tell, is so humorous Anthony?" Loki's voice is sleek, icy and deadening, but Tony can't find it in himself to stop the mad snickers pouring from his mouth.

"_Heh, bag – ha-ha-ha – of c-c-cats._" He barely managed to utter the few words in between his gales of unrestrained laughter. His side hurt, and at first he thought it's from laughing too hard, but then he felt dampness soaking his fur, he could smell the copper tang of blood, and he realized that he's intensified his Ratzilla wounds.

It's not just his cuts that he's suddenly conscious of, but the rest of his aching body as well. His fever was clearly still there, his paws felt wet and he noticed that he was actually producing sweat through the pads of his feet. He'd always wondered if cats or dogs could sweat, this wasn't how he'd wanted to find out though. His breaths were coming out heavy, too quickly, and it made his lungs burn. Thankfully, he wasn't hyperventilating; he didn't need Loki to see his anxiety attacks too.

His head ached worse than anything else. It was pounding so powerfully that he was almost certain Loki could hear the deafening noise. It made him dizzy, nauseous. It's not a headache; it's a fucking migraine and it's by far the most painful episode he's ever experienced. He also felt pretty lethargic, which was a first for him. He's always been about movement, whether to fidget, talk, build, _anything_. Hell, he didn't even sleep without tossing and turning all night.

And yet, he just couldn't seem to find it him to do anything other than laugh and blink slowly up at his captor.

"I suppose you are alluding to some sort of Midgardian joke? Your references and cultural anecdotes are lost on me Anthony." Loki said sounding normal and not so batshit crazy for once. "Now if you can control yourself, we have an appointment with the healer Keller."

He wasn't sure of anything much after that. He phased in and out after Loki had taken him out of his cage. His head was swimming too much for him to focus on anything, other than to mewl weakly whenever his leg "accidently" hit something. He took comfort in the cool hands that were pressed up against the side of his ribs, bringing sweet relief to the nerve damaged skin surrounding his Arc Reactor.

As Tony drifted, his eyes blank, he couldn't help but wonder just who was holding him.

~One Insult Too Many~

Loki was not happy with how quickly Stark's illness had progressed. And yet, he knew it had only advanced so quickly because of his earlier actions. Breaking Anthony's leg had redirected the focus of the mortal's body, centering on the superficial wound instead of combating the poison in his veins. It also did not help that he'd dove into the mortal's mind and then had left him unattended for hours as his health gradually declined.

Anthony was an anomaly due to the mechanism in his chest. Loki had no idea how his magic affected Anthony's condition, mentally or physically.

He held the mortal more gently than he would have preferred, as shivers start to wreck through the small body. As he studied the mortal, _his enemy_, it suddenly dawned on Loki just how fragile Anthony was now. Not that he'd been strong before, Midgardians were incredibly weak, but it's not just that. Anthony was so small, and his hands, while they do not dwarf the mortal, were still larger than his current form.

He was disgusted by such a pathetic display, but Loki could also feel something else in his chest that reacted differently at seeing the curled up creature resting on his lap. He did not wish to examine the emotion, for he's sure it's neither contempt nor fury, but rather a much different sentiment. So he avoided it, he pushed it back under the surface and was determined to never encounter the feeling again.

Loki's thoughts were interrupted as the mortal driver hit the curb of the street, informing him that they'd reached his destination. He summoned some currency of the realm, not even bothering to count the bills as he handed over more than enough to cover the toll. The mortal drove off quickly without returning what Loki is owed. In spite, the God waited until the mortal was further down the street and used a simple spell that deflated all four of the vehicles' tires.

He entered the building, pausing just long enough to see the mortal's horrified expression as many drivers cursed at him angrily, some even shouted threats they would carry out if he did not soon move out of their way. Loki smiled a little, for all their faults; he quite liked the selfish nature all mortals seemed to possess. But now Anthony was unmoving in his hands, and the irksome feeling from before returned, fortunately Keller's arrival acted as an adequate distraction.

"Oh no, what happened?" The healer asked, sounding genuinely worried, and Loki mustered up a look that's both sad and remorseful. He knew how to play sentimental fools and how to prey on their open heartedness. Unbidden, an image of Thor came to mind and he hissed inwardly, irritated that he could not find refuge from the oaf, even in his own head.

"I am unsure. I left for work this morning and returned to find him hiding under the bed." He followed the mortal into the examination room; the healer doesn't question his story. "He hasn't been using his front right leg and his breaths are much heavier than yesterday."

"Set him on the table, I have to see if his leg is broken or not." Loki had to bite back the urge to lash out at the healer for daring to give him an order and instead tried to set Anthony down on the table. He was surprisingly met with resistance, however weak it was. Anthony dug his claws into the sleeve of his coat and seemed unwilling to let go anytime soon.

"Anthony, release me." He said firmly, giving the mortal a warning squeeze.

"_No, if I do, you'll leave me here and never come back!_" The shout wasn't very loud, but the words and emotions behind them easily claimed Loki's attention.

"And how would that be a bad thing?" He whispered, seeing as the healer was rummaging through some nearby cupboards, not paying them the slightest attention. "Would you not wish freedom from me Anthony? Am I not cruel?" The mortal shook his small head, ears flapping slightly.

"_Please, I can't go back to that darkness, to that void._" Those words struck something hidden deeply inside Loki's mind, and suddenly, he is no longer with Anthony or in the healers' quarters. He is lost in nothing, but endless darkness.

The Void, so empty and hollow, he's felt that he's gone mad ten times over already, only to regain his sanity to simply lose it once more. He's trapped in an endless cycle that he cannot break; there is no one here and there is no sound, even his own thoughts seemed silent. And Loki knows that this is death in its most base form.

But then a voice cuts through the haze and Loki blinks, the healer's office replacing the sea of black. He is on Midgard, not the Void. A large part of him was grateful towards the voice that had pulled him away from the dark recesses of his mind. And he realized, with a start, that the voice belonged to Anthony Stark, the gratitude lessened immediately. It did not, however, disappear entirely.

"_**No!**_ _I can't go back, I won't go back!_" Anthony screamed, repeating the horrors of the Void as his breathing became even more rapid and labored. "_It's too dark, too cold!_" Loki was too stunned to move, for he had not known that another had been lost in the Void. Anthony's delirious rant continued, his jumbled sentences sounded like pure madness, but the God followed each broken shout effortlessly.

"Mr. Smith, please set Anthony on the table, I need to calm him down immediately!" Loki lurched a little at that command, and the situation reaffirmed itself. He tore Anthony from his sleeve, uncaring that the mortal's claws left behind jagged slits in the fabric. Anthony's pleas rose to a crescendo, and Loki easily recognized them because he'd spoken the same words once too.

"_Please, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I won't do it again! I promise! __**Please!**_" A needle was inserted into the mortal; his choked screams were cut off suddenly as the medicine rushed through his bloodstream. He grew limp after a few short minutes and his breathing eased. "_I'm sorry, I'm sorry…_"

Somehow, the muttered words were harder to take in than the shouts, because they're broken and reflect too much, revealing things Loki had never wanted to know.

"Alright, I should be able to get a good look at his leg now." The healer said, who of course has no idea just how damaged his patient truly is. "Would like to watch or would you prefer the waiting room?" Loki found that the softly spoken question was more difficult to answer than it rightfully should be.

If he stayed with Anthony, what did that mean? Would his presence merely be there to insure that nothing more happened to his prisoner? Or would he be staying out of pity? Out of understanding?

Because he did _understand_, he knows how cold and dark and silent the Void is. He knows what it's like to breathe in nothing, to feel a crushing pressure on his body, leaving him unable to move. Loki didn't know how long he'd been trapped in the Void, only that it had felt like an eternity at the time. But then the Other had found him, offering him a way out, a deal.

His green eyes landed on Anthony's shuddering form and Loki knew that he'd reached a level of understanding that could not be dismissed easily.

"I will stay." The words were heavy, low, thick with emotion, and nothing but a whisper. Anthony's left ear twitched slightly and a sigh of relief escaped the frail creature, again, Loki understands. He knows of the desire for company in the Void. He can't find it in himself to feel annoyed that he'd just relieved some of Anthony's suffering, instead of worsening it.

He only felt numb.

~One Insult Too Many~

Coulson's arrival at Stark Tower was one that he would remember for years to come, it was just a shame Stark hadn't been there too. He would have loved to see if it was possible for the man to be struck speechless. As it was, it seemed the mystery would remain until they found him.

Miss Potts surprised him. She launched herself into his arms, the moment he'd arrived on the top floor, cutting off the barrage of questions. Her watery smile had been unexpected, but deeply appreciated. Both Agents Barton and Romanoff gave him reserved nods, but there was a slight smirk on Clint's face and a warmness in Natasha's eyes that told him he'd been greatly missed by the duo assassins. Thor had almost broken his back by giving him the most powerful hug he'd ever experienced. Doctor Banner greeted him with a tired smile and awkward wave.

His eyes however, were mostly focused on his hero, Captain America, who stared at him with a wide-eyed, unbelieving look. The shock quickly disappeared and the war hero quickly joined the others in greeting him, offering a handshake that was somehow very welcoming. As they began questioning him again all at once, he raised a hand for silence and shot his hero a look.

"You didn't think you were the only one capable of coming back from the dead, did you?" He offered with a small smile on his face. The Captain shook his head fondly and Thor let out a booming laugh. He spotted Miss Potts brushing aside a few fallen tears, while Doctor Banner discreetly laid a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"I just can't believe you're alive, the Director told us–" Captain Rogers stopped there and Coulson's smile dimmed a little as he nodded.

"I'm aware of the situation. As for why Director Fury failed to notify any of you of my survival, I can't say." The room turned a little somber at that, however he pushed on before anyone could focus their thoughts enough to feel anger towards the Director and his decision. "The damage was surmountable; I was only in the ICU for two months. I've been reconditioning myself for the past few weeks and was supposed to be reinstated in another month. However, with Stark's absence, the Director thought it best I cut my vacation short."

"So you know about Tony?" Miss Potts asked, her good mood taking nosedive. New tears escaped her and he nodded solemnly. "I wish he was here to see you, he liked you a lot more than he ever admitted." At that, Coulson couldn't help but smile.

"_If I may, Miss Potts, Sir, did know of Agent Coulson's survival._" Jarvis said from overhead. "_He had, in fact, planned for when Agent Coulson revealed himself._" Miss Potts shook her head, looking both fond and irritated. It was an expression he had seen Stark's girlfriend/assistant make many times in the past.

"Tony knew about Phil and he never told me?" She sighed while glaring at the ceiling slightly. "What did he have planned Jarvis?"

"_If you'll allow Dummy a moment, he'll be up in a minute with Agent Coulson's present._" The AI responded. "_He found out Agent Coulson was a still alive little over three weeks ago while directly accessing S.H.I.E.L.D.'s private databanks._" There was a sad and hurt look on Miss Potts face, but Doctor Banner leaned over to whisper something in her ear, making her smile a little.

"There's a reason they're private Jarvis." Agent Romanoff said, sounding disapproving.

"_I'll be sure to remind Sir of that next time, Miss Rushman._" She didn't so much as twitch at the old alias or at the AI's surprisingly miff tone, but Coulson could still tell that it bothered her by the slight frown. It seemed Stark had still not forgiven Agent Romanoff for her deceit and from the blank expression on Miss Potts face, it seemed she shared Stark's feelings.

Coulson had pegged Stark as a man who wasn't quick to forgive betrayals easily.

A sharp ding rang throughout the penthouse floor and he turned to see a familiar robot heading towards him, holding a gift basket in its servo. He'd met Dummy, along with You and Butterfingers, when he'd been assigned to watch over Stark in Malibu while he'd been recreating the Arc Reactor a year ago.

"Thank you, Dummy." He said candidly, earning a few chirp-like sounds from the robot. Coulson understood how important the machines were to Stark and he knew better than to underestimate anything that man created. While Dummy and the others may not seem as impressive when compared to Jarvis, he knew that they too had personalities and thoughts of their own.

He opened the gift basket, ignoring the few Iron Man knickknacks scattered about, such as pens, pajamas, a t-shirt and a matching hat. His interest was caught by two things, an ordinary silver case and an already opened bottle of Champaign.

"Jarvis?" Miss Potts asked as he held up the bottle of wine that only had 3/4ths of its content left. Everyone had rolled their eyes at the Iron Man merchandise, some more fondly than others. "Care to explain what Tony was aiming for?"

"_The Champaign is actually the very same one Miss Potts and Sir opened the day Agent Coulson approached him about the Tesseract incident three months ago. He regretted not offering Agent Coulson a glass at the time._" Jarvis explained and Coulson looked at the bottle with new eyes. Stark must have held onto it out of guilt. "_I believe the Iron Man commodities are merely an example of Sir's poor attempt at humor._" He had to smile at that little quip. "_If you would open the tin case, Agent Coulson._"

Coulson did as instructed, a gasp breaking through his guard as his eyes widened. Slowly, he took the items from inside of the case, holding them reverently and ignoring Barton's snort. Captain America Collectable Trading Cards. They were vintage, but still in mint condition. There were more copies than just the ones to replace his cards that had been ruined by the Director months ago. There were some cards that knew to cost a small fortune, ones he never would have been able to afford in his lifetime.

"_Sir said to take better care of these cards._" It was official, Stark was now his favorite billionaire. Coulson felt more determined than ever to find Stark, if only to thank the man for the greatest present he'd ever received. He turned to Captain Rogers and offered him the large deck with a smirk, holding out an Iron Man pen in his other hand.

"Can you sign these for me?"

~One Insult Too Many~

They arrived back at the apartment hours later, the sun had already disappeared and night had fallen. Anthony was still unconscious and bore a dark green cast around his front leg. In his anger, Loki had only managed to fracture the limb, but the healer didn't wish to use splints, fearing that Anthony would just exacerbate his injury further. The cast itself wasn't very large, but it didn't allow Anthony the full extent of his leg, keeping it locked in a straightened position instead.

At least Anthony wouldn't be able to run away from him again.

He roused the mortal long enough to give him his medicine and brought the cage into his personal chambers. The healer had insisted that Loki sleep near Anthony, in order to keep an eye on his condition. Should the mortal's breathing deteriorate to the level it had reached earlier, he was to bring Anthony to the nearest animal hospital for immediate attention.

Loki, of course, had no intention of doing so.

Today was as far as he was willing to go in helping his adversary. If Anthony's illness strengthened in the night, he would have to pull through on his own merits. Loki was done showing kindness, even if it meant losing information and his revenge. He would send Anthony's body in a shoe box to his Tower should he die. The God smiled at that, he could just picture the horrified looks on the Avengers' faces.

His musings were broken as Anthony muttered something in his sleep, his small body curled up as his casted leg was pointed out in an awkward angle. Loki spared some magic to repair the cage and set it down on his dresser. He undressed, mind drifting as he performed the menial task of getting ready for bed. He lay down on the bed and dismissed the blankets to avoid from waking up in a sweat like yesterday. His body felt strained from all the magic he'd used throughout the day, but his awareness refused to rest.

Unwanted thoughts were dredged up from his mind, thoughts of Anthony and of memories that were both his and not his.

Howard Stark's furious face was overlapped by the All-Father's and Loki found that they did not quite match up. Stark's had been full of hate, bitterness and frustration. Odin's was basked in anger, grief and pity. They were not the same. Loki did not know why this was so significant; he just knew it was something he'd noticed and that his mind kept returning to it. As if there were a sign in their contrasts that his subconscious had managed to pick up on.

It was clear that Howard hated Anthony, there had been outright loathing portrayed on the man's face in each memory. Odin had never looked at him that way.

Did that mean something?

_No_. The All-Father was just simply better at hiding his dislike than the mortal had been. His thoughts then turned to Maria Stark. She had been a very poor excuse of a mother, weak and unloving. Loki could not say the same of his own mother, Frigga.

Frigga had always been kind and loving, showering him in attention since Odin had not cared for him or his. '_But,_' a dark part of his mind whispered, '_what if she was simply masking her true feelings like Odin had?_' His entire body tensed at the very idea that her actions might have been a lie too. He banished those thoughts as quickly as they had come. He did not wish to know if such things were true.

He turned in his bed, eyes landing on Anthony and his cage. While Anthony may have shared his fate with being governed by a detestable father, he certainly had not been trapped in the shadows of another, of that Loki was certain. The mortal had no idea what it was like to be second best, to amount as no more than a stolen relic, to learn that he was in fact a monster.

And he certainly knew nothing of betrayal.

~One Insult Too Many~

COULSON LIVES! I don't know about anyone else, but when I saw Loki "kill" Phil, I actually gasped a shocked "no" in the theater. I did it again when I bought the movie on DVD. Whoever doesn't love Coulson is a Nazi! I can't wait to see him in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

We finally reached a point in the story where Loki's feelings towards Tony are something other than anger and hate. As they say, it's hard to hate what you understand. Loki now knows that he and Tony have shared a horrifying experience that others could not even imagine. As much as he dislikes Tony, this connection is a pretty significant thing and a part of him realizes that. I'm not saying that Loki has had a change of heart, only that this is the first step in another direction.

Tony, however, still really hates Loki.

~Hexalys~


End file.
